12c Transmutation of Time Pt 3 The New Argonauts
by Margaret Price
Summary: During his search for a missing friend the Doctor is reunited with some friends from the past, comes up against a mad man, and uncovers a plot to take over an Empire. Just routine, really. 5th Doctor
1. Summoned

The Transmutation Of Time – Part 3 © 2003 - Time Line One – _The New Argonauts_ © 1996-8 Margaret Price

AUTHOR'S NOTE: This story is quite long, 48 chapters in all, and took me two years to complete. It is set immediately after Part 2 - _A Hole In Time_ and returns the 5th Doctor to his time stream following the TV story "Resurrection Of The Daleks." This is also a sequel of sorts to the second story in my 4th Doctor arc _Whom The Gods Destroy,_ seeing the return of some characters and locations introduced therein.

A computer crash delayed the upload of this part. Fortunately, I was able to save my data before the hard drive went up in flames.

* * *

**TIME LINE ONE**

**THE NEW ARGONAUTS**

**The Fifth Doctor and Turlough**

**Chapter One**

**Summoned**

A quirk of fate had sent the Doctor too far forward in his own time stream, bending it to the point where Turlough found himself face-to-face with one of the Doctor's future selves, as well as others from the Time Lord's past and future. The unnatural bend had thrown the Doctor's body so far out of phase that he became too ill to realize what was happening or do anything to correct it. Fortunately the efforts of his friends and future self safely returned him to his proper place in time—with only Turlough knowing the exact details of the bizarre event. Details he could reveal to no one with out disastrous ramifications.

During a portion of the incident, the robot Kamelion had been present and it soon became apparent to Turlough that he was even more unreliable than ever. He had let some of the event's details slip, much to the young man's annoyance. The Doctor was oblivious to this by-play, how ever, and thought the android was simply malfunctioning and just needed to have all of his systems thoroughly checked over.

"Doctor, I've already run a full diagnostic on Kamelion's systems," Turlough objected. "Everything is as it should be."

The Doctor looked up from the console. "Always best to be sure," he chirped brightly. "You did say he experienced a power surge while I was ill, didn't you?"

"Yes. But that was—" Turlough broke off when the Time Lord started resetting the coordinates. "What're you doing?"

"Change of plan," the Doctor grinned, only to be rewarded with a scowl of disapproval.

"Doctor, we're supposed to be going someplace where you can rest. Jason was very specific about that." Turlough was referring to Jason Krystovan, a former traveling companion of the Doctor's who had assisted in returning the Time Lord to his proper place in his timeline. Jason was the Crown Prince of Tel-Shye when Turlough had met him only two short moths ago, but the unnatural bend had brought him face to face with King Jason.

"Well, Jason isn't here now, is he?" came the sharp retort. "Anyway, I feel perfectly fine."

"I take it this means we're _not_ going to his wedding?"

The Time Lord looked up and grinned. "Not to worry. We'll get there. That's the wonderful thing about time travel. You can always arrive on time."

Turlough sighed heavily. It was no use arguing when the Doctor had made his mind up, especially when he became so smug about it. Glancing at the navigational controls, he asked, "Okay. So where _are_ we going, then?"

"Aegis. More specifically the Alexandria Foundation. Second era of the Earth Republic, I believe. Just at the height of its—"

A loud bang suddenly shook the TARDIS and the time travelers had to grab the console to keep from being thrown across the room. The lights in the console room flickered and then dimmed. Deep within the heart of the time machine the engines could be heard protesting loudly as they strained against an enormous external force.

"Doctor, what's happening!" Turlough demanded fearfully.

"The TARDIS is trapped in an energy field!" the Doctor exclaimed, not quite believing it him self. "We're being suspended in vortex!"

"What? That's impossible!"

Clinging to the console with one hand and manipulating the controls with the other, the Doctor struggled to reestablish control finally thumping the console in frustration. "The energy field's too strong," he called over the noise. "I can't break free!"

"Doctor, we're going to explode if you don't—!"

Turlough was suddenly shouting in total silence, the violent shaking having stopped as abruptly as it started. Exchanging an astonished look with the Doctor, he hesitantly released his grip on the console and looked down at the readings in front of him. "Doctor!" he gasped in a quiet, frightened voice. "We've been pulled _out_ of time and space."

The Time Lord made no reply, going over to scrutinize the readings himself. Even though it did not show outwardly, he had to admit to feeling a bit frightened himself. To pull the TARDIS off course was no small feat, but to pluck it out of vortex completely! Who—_or_ _what_—could possibly possess that much power?

The exterior doors suddenly swung open and the console room was flooded with a blazing white light that forced its occupants to shield their eyes. The glare faded quickly, revealing a man dressed in a three-piece business suit, a great blue jewel gleaming in the medallion around his neck. "Emperor Quinton," the Doctor whispered, relief washing visibly over his entire body. "I should've realized."

"My apologies if my overly dramatic appearance alarmed you, Doctor," the Alterran monarch said mildly as he entered. "The matter is an urgent one, and locating you has been rather difficult."

Turlough knew exactly why the TARDIS had been hard to find, the events returning vividly to his mind. He did not know the Emperor could read these thoughts and was unprepared for the steady gaze he suddenly received from Quinton.

Intrigued, the Doctor threw his companion a quizzical look before bowing slightly. "Not at all, your Majesty. How may I be of service?"

The Alterran smiled, holding out a hand. "Please, join me and I'll explain." With that, he turned and vanished through the doors.

"Doctor, who is that?" Turlough asked in a low voice.

"Lord Emperor Quinton of Alterrous," came the startling reply. "Wait here."

"No, Doctor, your companion, too," came the Emperor's voice through the open doors. "This affects him as much as it does you. Perhaps even more so."

The Time Lord exchanged a startled if somewhat puzzled look with his companion before saying, "Behave yourself and come on."

Despite having been invited, Turlough was still hesitant. He had heard all about the Emperor from Jason, the eminent personage being none other than his friend's Great uncle. When he had been told the monarch possessed virtually limitless power, he had laughed, well…scoffed, actually. He wasn't scoffing now. There could be no denying the enormity of the power that had so effortlessly plucked the TARDIS from vortex. Stepping through the exterior doors, Turlough found himself in a long, bright hallway that led downward and ended with an ordinary looking wooden door. To his astonishment, he found the door opened into a large wood paneled room that turned out to be the Emperor's private office.

Even though his companion was nervous in the presence of this powerful being, the Doctor was not, his having known the Emperor a great many years. His familiarity had taught him two things; Quinton disliked small talk and appreciated candor. He took a seat and looked across the desk at the monarch, studying him a moment before saying, "Now, Majesty, why have you summoned me?"

The Emperor leaned back in his chair, his chiseled features softening. "I need your help, Doctor. My—" Pausing a moment, he announced, "Jason has been kidnapped."

"What!" The Doctor exchanged a shocked and horrified look with his companion. "When did this happen?"

"More than eight weeks ago," the sovereign informed.

"Eight weeks!" The Doctor was appalled and sprang to his feet. "Why didn't you contact me sooner!" Suddenly remembering who he was rebuking, he cleared his throat nervously and sat down again. "Forgive me. You were saying…?"

Quinton cracked an amused smile. "I'm glad to see your regeneration hasn't changed your directness, Doctor," he observed mildly, bringing a self-conscious smile to the Time Lord's face.

"It happened on—" Stopping himself, the Emperor held up a hand. "No, let me start before that. Jason was acting as my representative on a goodwill tour of the outer planets. You know what I mean. Meet the local leaders, shake a few hundred hands, and so on." He gave way to a bittersweet smile as he recalled his nephew's protests when he was told of the tour.

"Yes, but…why Jason?" the Doctor asked pointedly. "He's not exactly the most diplomatic of individuals."

"Because, whether he'll admit it or not, Jason is very good at dealing with outsiders. Humans in particular. His emotional peaks and valleys allow him to blend in, and give him the ability to spot trouble without being too obvious." Quinton slid a paper across the desk as he went on, "This is the itinerary he was following. He was to report on the status of each stop and transmit it back to me."

The Doctor scanned the list, seeing nearly all had been checked off. Turning the paper over he read the notations made in the precise unphysician-like handwriting he had always kidded the Healer about. _Is this all that's left of you, my friend? A few scribbled notes on a piece of paper?_ Looking up, he asked the inevitable, "What happened?"


	2. What Happened

**Chapter Two**

**What Happened**

The Doctor expected to be told that no one knew for certain and was therefore unprepared when the Emperor said, "See for yourself," and activated a view screen. "He was making this log entry when it happened."

The image of a travel weary Prince Jason appeared on the screen. "Entry number seventy-two," he said in a tired voice. "Seventy-too many," he added under his breath. "Well, I must admit that Gillaanan Four is far and away the most down to earth colony I've visited so far. Every one I've met has been hospitable and open to suggestions on making this colony more cost efficient…and profitable. I definitely recommend further assistance and possibly a protection force."

After a thoughtful pause, he added, "You may want to consider sponsoring a joint venture in the fledgling mining operation. The ore samples I forwarded have a high concentration of—" Jason broke off, turning away from the screen. "Sounds like Sully's back," he muttered. "Sully, is that you?" he then called towards the cabin door. In the background there was the sound of laser fire followed by a scream. The prince was instantly on his feet. "Sully!" Turning back to the terminal, he commanded, "Computer, activate automatic distress call. Continue recording until deactivated by voice command."

The computer acknowledged the order just as the door was blown open. Jason spun around to see three intruders menacing him with high-energy weapons. Holding out his hands, he took a step back and said evenly, "I'm not armed."

"All the better," came the grating reply as the intruder fired his weapon pointblank.

The Alterran prince threw up his hands and took another step back, concentrating to absorb the energy being fired at him. A second member of the band joined in, but Jason stayed on his feet. It took the combined efforts of all three to finally bring him down (much to the amazement of the Doctor, who silently marveled at how powerful his friend had become.)

"Cass, he's sent a distress call," one of the attackers called from the console.

"Who cares? We'll be long gone before anybody gets here."

Apparently the one in charge, Cass watched calmly as the stunned prince was securely bound, gagged and blindfolded. It was not until the Alterran moaned that he showed any emotion at all. "Don't forget the drug," he ordered worriedly. "These things will be useless a second time." He waved the weapon in his hand to make his point. "If he comes to with his system in balance, he'll be more than the lot of us can handle."

A metabolic destabilizer was immediately administered, its purpose being to throw Jason's metabolism out of whack, making it impossible for him to transmute. With their quarry no longer a threat, the group left the ship, the entire incident having taken no more than five minutes. Then the screen went blank.

Emperor Quinton remained silent, allowing his guests time to absorb what they had just witnessed. It was the Doctor who spoke first. "I'm not going to insult you with the obvious question," he said mildly. "What did your investigation find?"

Not to his great surprise he was told that nothing conclusive had been found in or around Jason's shuttle. The operation had been meticulously planned and executed. The only significant point was that, while the kidnappers were human, they had more than a passing knowledge of Alterrans.

"Yes," the Doctor said thoughtfully. "I noticed they knew enough to drug him to prevent his transmuting."

"What are they demanding for his return?" Turlough asked. He was startled when the Emperor turned a piercingly steady gaze in his direction, his sapphire blue eyes seeming to glow momentarily. For a brief panic-stricken moment the young man wondered if he was not sup posed to speak during this interview.

"To date, no ransom demand has been received," came the calm reply.

The Doctor was incredulous. "What? None?"

"None," the Emperor confirmed gravely. "Oh, we identified all the men in the recording. Wanted criminals, the lot. Unfortunately, they all seem to've met with a violent end within days of the kidnapping."

"Murdered, no doubt, by the person or persons who hired them," the Doctor remarked.

"Not directly. It was all perfectly 'legal,' if that's the right word for it. You know the sort of thing, I think? A barroom brawl gets out of hand and so on."

_This is going from bad to worse_, the Doctor thought darkly. _No ransom. No kidnappers. No evidence. No nothing._

"It doesn't make sense," Turlough injected. "Why go to all the trouble to organize something like this if you're not going to capitalize on it?"

Having wondered the same thing, the Doctor turned an inquiring gaze to the Emperor, who admitted that the possibility of a personal grudge had been explored. The list was narrowed down to only one person who was vindictive enough, intelligent enough and possessing the means to organize something on so large a scale.

"The Master," the Doctor concluded, bringing an admiring look to the Alterran monarch's face. The Time Lord nodded. It would be just like his enemy to humiliate his victim in the way they had just witnessed. "I don't know what you expect me to do, Majesty. If the Master were behind this, he'd've done something to bring this to my attention before now. And left some kind of trail I could follow, however obscure. Since this hasn't happened…" Pausing, he gave voice to a thought they had all shared, "You do realize Jason may already be dead."

The monarch met the Time Lord's gaze steadily, a hand going to the Great Seal. "No…" he said softly. "He's alive. I can still feel his mental energy, but…it's fading."

By this time Turlough was completely lost but kept his confusion to himself. It was obvious the Doctor understood what this meant.

"Too faint to get a fix on?" the Doctor asked.

The Emperor nodded. "His mind is in turmoil, fading in and out. More drugs, probably. Oddly enough, I only managed to lock onto him when he started calling for you. I think he was aware of my contact. I'm just not sure he knew it was real."

Before the Doctor could interrupt, the Emperor held up a hand. "When the official investigation turned up nothing, an unofficial investigation began. It's being run by a group calling it self the Argonauts." With an impish grin, he added, "I'm, eh, not supposed to know about it."

"Why's that?" the Time Lord asked.

"Because they're operating from the Sorenson Estate on Aegis." Noting his guests' startled expressions, the Alterran's smile broadened. "You were on your way to the Alexandria Foundation when I stopped you, I believe."

"Yes, we were, as a matter of fact," the Doctor confirmed.

"Then perhaps you wouldn't mind making a slight detour? Their base is located only a few kilometres off your original flight path."

"And you want me to join them, I take it?"

"No, Doctor, I want you to lead them."

The Doctor blinked, exchanged a look of mutual disbelief with his companion before turning back to stare unbelievingly at the Emperor.

"Isn't that assuming an awful lot, even for you?" he asked once he had found his voice.

"Perhaps," came the evasive reply. "Let's just say I've had another glimpse into your future and leave it at that."

A knowing smile came to Turlough's face. He, too, had had a glimpse into the Time Lord's future. Prince Jason's too, come to that. Having seen the King that Jason would someday be come, he wondered how much his knowledge would influence him in the present. Looking up, he saw the Emperor staring fixedly at him again, an odd searching look on his face.

The moment passed quickly and Quinton was himself again, giving the Doctor the paperwork from the official investigation. While the Time Lord was assimilating it, the monarch took his companion aside and spoke privately with him before bidding them farewell.

* * *

"I suppose it would be foolish of me to ask what his Majesty said to you?" the Doctor remarked as he hit the dematerialization switch.

Turlough frowned. Only part of the conversation was clear. The Emperor had told him he had seen the image of the future Jason in his mind, but the rest of what he had said was only a vague impression. A dream he could not quite recall.

Looking up in bewilderment, he said, "I don't know. It's as if… This is going to sound crazy, but…it's as if he didn't use words."

"Not at all. He probably didn't." Seeing the puzzled expression on the boy's face, the Doctor said patiently, "He's telepathic. Incredibly so, as a matter of fact, thanks to the Great Seal—that jewel around his neck." Waving a hand in the air, he said dismissively, "Never mind. Whatever he wants you to know, you'll re member when the appropriate time comes. Right now our first order of business is finding this rescue effort."

Turlough grunted. "And the second is to convince them that you're the man to lead them."


	3. Prisoner

**Chapter Three**

**Prisoner**

After being removed from his ship, the bound Prince Jason was packed in a crate and trans ported to parts unknown. Despite the fact that his abductors had taken the precaution of drugging him, he was still lucid enough to know exactly what was going on. It was immediately clear to him that escape was impossible and struggling pointless. He chose, instead, to concentrate on staying calm and hope an opportunity to escape would present itself.

After arriving at what he assumed was his final destination, the trapped Alterran listened as his kidnappers negotiated with whoever had hired them. During the course of what was rapidly turning into an argument the crate was pried open and Jason was unceremoniously dumped out onto the floor. Not wanting his captors to realize he was fully conscious, he let himself go limp as he was roughly pulled to a sitting position. Apparently there had been some question as to his identity—and if he were still alive. With these facts established, negotiations resumed in earnest.

Seemingly forgotten, the prince quietly awaited the outcome. He was surprised by his own calmness until he remembered the drug he had been given was actually nothing more than an elaborate tranquilizer. Then he wondered almost abstractly if he were in any actual danger.

Jason was snapped back to reality when he was roughly pushed down onto the floor. He fought back more out of annoyance than anger, letting out a muffled cry of pain as a needle was stabbed into his arm. To his added surprise, just as he was slipping into unconsciousness he heard a voice that was vaguely familiar.

* * *

Whether it were minutes, hours, or days later Jason could not say for certain, but the next thing he knew he was waking up in a kind of reclining chair in what he assumed was an operating theater. He tried to move only to discover he was completely strapped down. As his mind cleared he realized the lighting was all wrong for an operating room. It was brightly illuminated around the perimeter rather than where he was. A figure suddenly loomed over him and he looked fuzzily up at him. "Wh…what's…happening?" he asked groggily. "Where am I? What is this place?"

The man smiled benignly and then injected the horrified prince with yet another drug, rendering him beyond comprehending anything further. Reaching up, the man pulled down an elaborate helmet connected to numerous cables and fitted it over the unconscious Alterran's head. "He's ready, Dr. Legrand," he announced once he had finished.

Dr. Legrand stood at the main control console, glancing over the instruments before giving the word to proceed. The system was activated and the prince whimpered, stirring weakly in his drugged stupor as the machine began extracting and recording the contents of his mind.

After a few minutes Jason moaned again, as did the computer, as it protested against the strain it was being subjected to. The information flooding into it came faster and faster until its programming could no longer handle the strain. Smoke started pouring from one of the control boards then one system after another started to overload. Before the technicians could shut down the system, the experiment ended itself with a loud pop and an explosion of sparks.

The same instant Jason screamed in pain, the energy backlash causing his body to go completely rigid. Panic ensued. Someone had the sense to pull the helmet's connections from the computer and the Alterran's body convulsed before going completely limp.

* * *

Unaware of how lucky he was to still be alive, Prince Jason returned to his senses inside a padded cell. He sat up slowly, wondering just what had happened to him; but try as he might he could recall nothing after being drugged. He felt extremely weak and his head was pounding but at least he was still in one piece. There was a tray of food near the door and he crawled over to it, inwardly grateful his captors were not going to let him starve. He did not even have to scan his food to detect the drug in his water. The odor was unmistakable to the Healer's nose. "Metabolic destabilizers," he said in distaste, shakily holding the cup up to the light. "Somebody's research is a few hundred years out of date." Needless to say, he did not drink the water. He did, how ever, complete everything else on the tray.

Feeling a little better, Jason looked around the empty room, a heavy sigh escaping his lips. The only other object in the cell with him was a thick blanket that lay in a crumpled heap in the far corner. He crawled over to it and wrapped himself in its thick, soft folds before leaning back against the wall in the corner. He needed to think, but his exhausted and abused body had other plans. Within minutes he was sound asleep.

* * *

Dr. Legrand sat in his office reading the preliminary report on the damage done to the computer. While it did not seem too extensive, he knew it would throw the entire project off schedule for nearly a week, if not longer. Sighing heavily, he turned his attention to the more difficult problem involving the scanner's programming. It was now painfully obvious the information in the prince's mind was more detailed than he had been led to believe. A more controlled method of extraction would have to be employed if he did not want to blow all the systems again. Fortunately just such a method existed. His very own Lazarus Project.

Still in the experimental stages, the Lazarus Project had proven extremely successful in tests. It had also proven extremely dangerous. Before the process could be utilized, probes had to be surgically implanted into the subject's brain. They consisted of an outer sheath, an inner stimulus core and a microcircuit controller located in the cap that protruded just above the scalp. The cap was so small as to be virtually undetectable, yet was the very heart of the system.

The computer would activate a probe in the area of the brain to be recorded, setting the pace at which the information was extracted. In theory, this was how the probes were supposed to work. In practice, however, they had been no end of trouble. Many times the probes would continue to stimulate the brain long after the computer was disconnected, causing waking dreams, hallucinations, or even delusions. They also had a tendency to block off areas of the brain at random, making concentration difficult if not impossible at times.

Dr. Legrand had become convinced the problems were merely a design flaw, but each subsequent design created its own set of problems. The final blow came when it was revealed the probes could not be removed without causing severe brain damage to the subject, the filaments that were at the ends of the sheath fusing themselves to the brain after initial stimulation. Eventually Legrand's financial backers, unable to persuade him to abandon the project for a safer method, withdrew funding, forcing him to seek financial support elsewhere.

A smile of irony came to Legrand's face as he reflected on this. It had been Prince Jason him self who had recommend the suspension of the Lazarus Project, his contention being that it was more of a threat to a patient's health than a help. The loss of funding the prince had caused had forced Legrand to move to his present, secluded location in a renovated warehouse.

A hidden camera in Jason's cell transmitted the image of the sleeping Alterran to a monitor in the Director's office and for several minutes Legrand sat watching the seeming peaceful figure before remembering he had to contact his newest backers to advise them of the delay. Activating the communication system, he was rewarded with a roar of static. Several adjustments only seemed to make matters worse and he cursed the antiquated equipment. When this job was done, he promised himself, he would replace the ancient piece of junk with something manufactured within the current century.

The Director's musings were interrupted by an unintelligible squawk he assumed was an acknowledgment to his signal. He informed his benefactors of the current status of the operation. Not to his great surprise, they were not pleased.

"There is an alternative," he suggested, "but there is a risk involved with it."

The distorted, crackling reply had an edge to it that made his skin crawl. How he hated the metallic quality the antiquated language translator gave incoming transmissions.

"What kind of risk? Will the Alterran's life be endangered?"

"Not initially," Legrand replied evasively. "The implants stimulate the brain so extraction can be made more efficiently. The excessive stimulation interrupts normal sleep patterns and could induce a mental psychosis." Pausing, he added, "It's also possible, given that he's a silicon-based lifeform, that his bio-electrical field will be badly disrupted."

"The Alterran's mental health is unimportant," the box squawked. "Use whatever methods are necessary to complete the work." With that, the message ended.

* * *

AUTHOR'S NOTE: This story was written in 1996, a full 7 years prior to the release of the audio drama "Project: Lazarus." The only similarity between the two is the name, which I must admit was disconcerting when I first saw it. - MP


	4. The Lazarus Project

**Chapter Four **

**The Lazarus Project **

Prince Jason awoke with a start, cursing himself for having fallen asleep. Looking around he noticed the tray was gone and wondered how long he had been sleeping. Struggling to a sitting position, he leaned back against the wall and tried to pull his thoughts together but ended up dozing off yet again.

Hours passed before the Alterran awoke again. He gave up trying to think, struggling to a sitting position once more. The door suddenly opened and he found himself staring up at two very large men, who roughly dragged him from the room. Still weak from the extraction at tempt, he chose not to resist. "Alright, alright. I'll go quietly. There's no need to push."

His escorts ignored his protests, taking him to Legrand's real operating room where the probes would be implanted. Jason was scarcely through the door when a mask was forced over his face and he was rendered unconscious once again.

* * *

Nearly two weeks passed after the disastrous extraction attempt before the computer systems were finally back on-line. Jason had been kept under heavy sedation from the time of his surgery in order to give the probes time to heal in properly. It was only when the team was ready to make another extraction attempt that he was allowed to come to his senses, if only partially.

"I…I…_know_ this room…" the Alterran muttered groggily, the world swimming around him. "I've…I've seen it before…somewhere…" He did not even attempt to fight as he was secured to the couch, being too busy struggling to concentrate. He became aware of someone standing off to one side, but the light shining into his eyes made it impossible to see the face. "Who are you people?" he asked at last. "What do you want from me?"

"Why, to help you, of course, your Highness," Dr. Legrand replied benignly. "Why else would you be sent here?"

"Sent?" Jason repeated the word as if he had never heard it. "I wasn't sent. I was kid napped."

"There, you see? This delusion of conspiracy—"

"Delusion!" Jason was incensed, his adrenaline level rising along with his temper. "I'm at tacked, drugged and tied up like a Christmas present. And you stand there telling me I'm imagining things!"

Legrand sighed heavily. "Your Highness, you mustn't fight the truth. You'll only make your recovery more difficult. The treatments will help you. But only if you'll let them."

"Treatments? What treatments?" Jason looked above his head just as a technician was bring ing down the helmet, its insides bristling with long spikes. In a sudden, horrifying instant he knew exactly what was happening. "The Lazarus Project!" he gasped, struggling in vain as his head was clamped into place. "No! You can't use that thing on me! I know what it does to people's minds!"

"Of course, you do," Legrand cooed condescendingly to his helpless prisoner. "It's going to help you remember where you first manifested this idea of conspiracy."

"I don't need any help remembering. I know who you are, Curtis Legrand! You can't hide from me in the dark." The prince continued to squirm as the helmet was brought into place, the pins moving into position with a snap.

Legrand leaned forward to reveal himself in the light, the look on his face sending a chill down the Alterran's spine. For the first time since his abduction, Jason felt real fear.

"I wouldn't dream of hiding from _you_, your Royal Highness," the Director hissed venomously. Looking up, he commanded, "Begin."

The prince let out an involuntary cry as the device was activated and power suddenly surged through him. His body went rigid and then slowly relaxed. Legrand smiled evilly down at him. How wonderfully sweet his revenge was going to be.

Looking up, the Director waved impatiently at the others. "What are you all standing around for? Begin the scan," he snapped. "Surely his adrenaline level is high enough for you to calibrate the gauges this time."

"You might've warned us the last time he wasn't human," the Chief Technician replied sourly. "I'd've run a test scan instead of—"

"I'm not interested in excuses, Inness. We're not being paid to make mistakes. We can't afford any further delays."

"We'll still have to give his body time to recover between sessions," Inness objected stupidly. "The electrochemical imbalances will—"

"Who do you think designed this system, you idiot?" the Director snapped impatiently. "Now do your job before I get someone else to do it for you."

Unimpressed by the all too familiar threats, Inness turned his attention to the main control board. Several monitors came to life as all systems were brought on-line. The recording equipment let out a small beep and the technician announced, "Ready to begin scan."

"I want two recordings," Legrand instructed suddenly.

"No problem. I can duplicate—"

"No, simultaneously. I want to make doubly sure there are no mistakes this time." Pausing, Legrand added, "In fact, run a test first. Just to be on the safe side."

Muttering to himself about the constant inconsistencies of his employer, Inness made a quick adjustment to the recording systems before beginning the test.

A small whimper escaped the helpless prince as the scan began. He had only been stunned by the activation of the helmet, not knocked unconscious as they all assumed. The delay had given him time to return to partial consciousness, something that went unnoticed by all present.

Across the room the image translator came on, its purpose being to translate the extracted thoughts into visual images the team could monitor. The screen flickered in an uncertain manner before settling down into crisp, exacting detail as the incident of a few minutes before was re played.

Satisfied that all was proceeding in a more orderly manner, the Director gave the order for the full procedure to commence.

"Are we following the original sequence?" Inness wanted to know, feeling as though he might explode when the response was no.

Legrand held up a hand before his Chief Technician could erupt. "I've already made the necessary changes. Just initiate the program."

With the flick of a few switches, the images from the Alterran's life began replaying them selves on the image translator. Years passing in a blur as the computer searched for the correct memory cluster. It did not slow down until it reached the point where Jason left for Gallifrey the first time.

A satisfied smile came to the Director's face as he watched this obvious success. The redesigned probes were working even better than he had hoped.

Virtually ignored, the captive prince moaned plaintively, his conscious mind powerless to stop the flood of information pouring forth in a swirl of chaotic images.

The extraction continued unimpeded until a single image appeared on the translator screen; the computer having come upon the Alterran's first encounter with the Doctor nearly two centuries earlier. It showed Jason digging someone out from beneath a pile of rubble.

The Director scowled at the image, cursing under his breath. "We've lost the thought stream."

"No, we haven't," Inness informed. "The computer's still—" He broke off when someone let out a shout. "Mr. Inness, look at this! I'm getting an adrenaline response. It's incredible. Some of the readings are off the scale."

At the same time the prince started to struggle weakly in his bonds, his conscious mind having latched onto more than just the memory. "Doctor…" he whispered. "Doctor, help me…"

Legrand stared at the image translator. "Whatever you do, don't lose that memory cluster. I want to know who that is." The words were barely out of his mouth when the screen went blank. His eyes narrowed in rage and he turned to the technicians in disgust. "Don't tell me you've lost it already?"

Inness looked up apologetically. "We've hit an area block. It just…switched off."

The Director sighed heavily, knowing this was inevitable. He was about to order the operation shut down when he noticed the prince still reacting to the stimulation. Pushing Inness aside, he switched the system to manual in a vain attempt to get at the memories behind the block.

The experiment came to an abrupt halt when Jason succeeded in breaking one of his restraints, his strength having been increased by the adrenaline rush and steady supply of energy. A quick jolt of power through the implants was all that was needed for his captors to render him senseless yet again.


	5. Illusions

**Chapter Five**

**Illusions**

Jason awoke to find himself back in his cell, and for a long time he sat staring blankly into space. He could deal with being kidnapped, and could even deal with being drugged most of the time. But he did not think he could deal with the knowledge of what the sessions would be doing to his mind. All his life he'd had a morbid fear of going violently insane; a fear that seemed about to be forced into reality.

Wrapping himself in his blanket, the Alterran dragged himself over to the far corner of the room. Leaning back, he drew a deep breath, reaching up to his shaved scalp and giving way to a shudder when his fingers ran over the implant caps. Closing his eyes, he swallowed hard and tried to stay in control. He knew no one would hear his calls for help, but perhaps someone would hear him _think_ for help, telepathically. Concentrating what little energy he had left, Jason reached out with his mind as the Doctor had taught him so long ago. _The Doctor. Why do I keep thinking of the Doctor? Is it the session? Or is it a message? Did you hear me, Doctor?_

"Who am I trying to kid?" Jason muttered darkly, opening his eyes again. "Nobody can hear me. I'm not that powerful, even on a good day." His gaze fell on the tray in its usual place by the door and he went over to it, being relieved to find his captors had stopped drugging his food. Pushing up his sleeve, he found a fresh puncture wound in his arm. "That explains it," he snorted. "They're using the direct approach." Touching the wound, he wondered if he could detect any traces of the drug on his skin to find out what he had been given. At the same time he reflected on the irony that the only thing he could not scan was himself. Then a sudden thought struck him and he caught his breath. Had his captors discovered the secret of his scanning ability? Was that why they'd stopped drugging his food?

Jason had no way of knowing his captors would never be able to extract his secret, thanks to the Doctor's tutelage. He had learned several ways of protecting his mind from attack, one of which utilized his scanning ability as the trigger for a defense mechanism. Whenever Legrand got close enough to discovering his secret, Jason's mind would switch off, causing one of the blocks the computer encountered, and because his scanning was such an integral part of his gift of total recall, a major portion of his memories were chemically encoded, indecipherable without the proper key. Something Legrand had yet to discover.

* * *

With no point of reference to distinguish day from night, the captive Prince Jason lost all concept of time. His thoughts of rescue became obscured by strange memories and images that came unbidden to his mind. As time went by he grew weaker and weaker, his health being secondary to the completion of the project. He was given only one day's rest between sessions, which was not nearly enough time for his body to recover. Eventually the lack of proper rest and continual stress started to show outwardly. Dark circles made their mark on his pallid face, his once jet black hair growing back snow white.

* * *

With the project nearing completion, Dr. Legrand forwarded an extract containing a massive amount of encoded information to his benefactors. He had explained about its untranslatability, yet they remained unconvinced. He hoped the advance copy would not only convince them, but might also provide him with the key to deciphering the remaining extracts. If he could not crack it, perhaps they could.

Unbeknownst to his backers, Legrand had also gone to other sources for help. He had contacted a colleague who was developing a new type of imaging technology and challenged him to decode the disk, claiming it to be a prototype recording.

A few days after the disks were sent off, Legrand's backers contacted him, informing him that final payment for the project would be withheld pending translation of the extracts.

"Now look, I kept my side of the bargain," Dr. Legrand protested. "I extracted exactly what you asked for. It's not my fault the information's unreadable."

"In its present form, there's no way to verify the authenticity of the extract," came the crack ling reply.

"Are you accusing me of fraud!" the Director exploded.

"Unless you can supply us with the translation key—"

"I'm not supplying anything until I'm paid," Legrand cut in sharply. "My people don't work for free. And they don't come cheap. Not for this kind of work."

The reply, which probably contained another harsh rebuke, was lost in a loud roar of static. The Director reiterated his stand. No money. No translation.

After a long silence, a surprising proposal was made. A portion of the final payment would be sent—along with a possible solution. Perhaps the prince himself could supply the key to the decoding dilemma. It was suggested that by utilizing the probes, false events could be implanted in the Alterran's mind as a control. It could then be extracted and translated to form a basis for future decoding.

Although doubtful, Legrand agreed to try in order to obtain the money, which arrived by messenger later that same afternoon.

Over the next several days Legrand tried time and again to find the key, playing one scenario after another without success. He had learned through the extracts that the Doctor was one of Jason's closest friends and had been trying to capitalize on this bond in the illusions.

Legrand stood watching as the newest scene played out on the image translator. It showed the Doctor comforting his friend inside his cell. The real Jason, who was strapped to the extraction couch, was completely caught up in the illusion, his own mind giving it direction. _The Doctor had come to save him! Or had he?_

"I've got to get you out of here," the Doctor was saying, glancing back to the door.

"If only that were possible…" Jason sighed, sagging back against the wall.

"Are you sure you're up to this?" the Time Lord asked concernedly. "You look tired."

Jason laughed at the absurdity of this remark. "Don't be so damn polite, Doctor. I probably look like hell."

"You said it, I didn't."

"Just think how I'd look if I'd ingested all the stuff they were putting in my food."

"Stuff? You mean drugs?" the Time Lord whispered, receiving another tired nod in reply. "Are you sure?"

"Am _I_ sure? Oh, really, Doctor. This is _me_ you're—" Cutting himself off, Jason closed his eyes and sighed heavily, a hand going to the probes in his head. "Yes, I see what you mean. Well, they may've gotten a lot out of me so far, but they still haven't got _that_."

The Doctor threw another look back at the door and then rose to his feet. "Come on, let's get out of here before they find out I'm here," he said, holding out a hand.

The prince took hold of the outstretched hand and scowled. The Time Lord's powerful and reassuring time aura should have registered instantly. But there was nothing coming from the man touching him. He felt solid enough, but that was all. It was as if he were not there at all. Pulling away, the Alterran's eyes narrowed in anger. "Who are you?" he demanded.

"What?"

"You heard me. Who are you? Why are you impersonating the Doctor?" Jason got unsteadily to his feet, falling back against the wall.

"Jason, don't do this," the other man said in an injured tone. He reached over to the prince, triggering a fit of rage.

"Don't touch me!" Jason exclaimed. He pressed himself against the wall, using it for support as he inched his way towards the open door. "You're no more the Doctor than I am. Oh, you've got his voice and mannerisms down pat, I'll say that for you. But that's all you've got."

"On what do you base this outlandish hypothesis?"

"If you _were_ the Doctor, you wouldn't need to ask," came the triumphant reply.

"Jason, you're not helping matters by getting hysterical," the Doctor said gently. "Hallucinations aren't real."

"Neither are you!" Jason got to the door at that moment and stood at the threshold a moment. There was nothing on the other side but pure, blank whiteness. He had expected nothing, and that was exactly what he found. Turning back, he announced, "This is all an illusion!" With these words, the scene dissolved into the unreality it was.

"I can't maintain the illusion," Inness reported. "His bio-electric field is becoming too unstable."

From the translation screen, Jason announced, "You can stop now. I know this isn't real."

The enraged Legrand ground his teeth, his patience run out. "Kill him," he ordered.


	6. Change Of Plan

**Chapter Six**

**Change of Plan**

For a single frozen moment no one in the room dared move. "What?" the astonished Inness gasped finally. "Curtis, you can't be serious?"

As in all the other failed attempts, the translator screen dissolved into static, which only served to fuel the Director's rage. He flew to the drug tray, measuring out an injection and returning to his helpless and now conscious prisoner.

Jason looked fuzzily up at the seething Legrand. "What's the point of all this?" he asked weakly. "Just what is it you want from me, Curtis?"

"I want your life," came the chilling reply.

"What?" This was not the answer the captive Alterran expected. He squinted to focus and saw the hypodermic, a chill running down his spine. "What…is that?" he asked shakily.

Before the Director could reply, Inness suddenly appeared out of nowhere. "Curtis, what the hell are you doing?"

"Don't interfere, Inness. I'm warning you…"

"Curtis, for God's sake!"

Before the confrontation, got any further the intercom buzzed. The Director was told that the messenger from his backers had returned and was waiting in his office. Hoping this meant the translation key had been found, Legrand put down the drug and stormed from the room leaving the visibly relieved Inness behind.

"He's gone completely over the edge, Inness," Jason observed softly.

Startled, the technician spun around, looking the captive Alterran in the eye. He reached for the helmet release, only to stop.

"No, don't stop. Please, let me out of this thing."

"No. You're better off there than in your cell," Inness said startlingly. "As long as you're hooked into the computer, the implants will stay dormant."

The prince struggled to comprehend, asking at last, "Why are telling me this?"

Inness threw a quick glance to the door but did not reply.

* * *

The following day the Chief Technician was called to the Director's office. He was not surprised when informed there had been yet another change in plan. He was, however, surprised when told a new financier had been acquired. "That was fast," he remarked. "I didn't realize you'd lost the first one. Is that what the messenger came to tell you?"

Legrand ignored the question, instructing him to run through all the extracts and pull out all the data that had not been encoded. "There are some people interested in those formulae we kept running across. Make a separate recording of them all and log them. I might have a buyer for each one."

Inness nodded and returned to the computer room. He did not think the job would take long, since a majority of the extracts were encrypted. It was not until he actually began work that he realized the enormity of the task before him. It would take days to pull out all the unencrypted information and log it.

On the third day of work, Inness was startled when Jason was brought in and returned to the extraction couch. "What's going on?" he asked the orderlies in bewilderment.

"You mean you don't know, either?" the prince asked in a surprised tone.

Legrand entered a moment later and dismissed the orderlies, smiling evilly at the immobilized Alterran. "Are you comfortable, your Royal Highness?" he asked urbanely.

Jason eyed him coldly. "Just get on with it. Don't even bother with your nonsense about helping me get well."

The Director smiled smugly, wheeling a cart over to the extraction couch. "Perhaps you're right," he sighed. "I am wasting my time with all this nonsense. I should just let you go insane and have done with it."

Jason frowned, not quite certain where this was leading. He had been left on his own over the past few days and his strength had, to a small degree, returned to him. He had not been drugged in that time either and, despite the implants, had he found he could think with semi-clarity. He threw a puzzled look in the Chief Technician's direction before asking, "What are you playing at now?"

"I'm not playing, boy!" Legrand snarled. He seized the Alterran by the throat, causing him to gasp, which was exactly what he wanted him to do. He jammed a wad of cloth into his open mouth and pulled a strap across, attaching it to the sides of the headpiece and securing the gag into place.

Terrified, completely helpless, and now mute, Jason watched as Legrand reached for something from the cart. To his relief and bewilderment, it turned out to be a pair of scissors with which his captor proceeded to cut off what remained of his clothing.

"Curtis, what on earth are you doing?" Inness wanted to know, echoing the prince's very thoughts.

The Director did not reply. He finished the job of stripping his captive naked and then began attaching sensor patches to him.

Baffled, Jason could do little more than endure the indignity of the operation that took more than an hour to complete. Legrand would plug a bundle of sensors into the computer system and then refer to a diagram to position them correctly. When he finally finished, he had attached more than a hundred leads to his prisoner's body.

As a rule, Jason was not overly body conscious, his human form being only an illusion to conceal his true appearance. His present situation had changed this, however, and he was relieved when his captor threw a sheet over his lower body once his task was complete.

"My research indicates your body is silicon based," Legrand said coolly. "That would mean you're made out of stone, wouldn't it?" Looking from the baffled Alterran to the equally baffled Inness, he ordered, "Inness, initiate the program marked _SENSOR TEST ONE_."

The Technician did as instructed and was horrified by the result. The program activated the newly attached sensors one at a time, causing the Alterran's body to jerk with each activation. Jason let out a muffled cry, biting down on the gag and straining against the straps as intense pain stabbed at his body.

An evil smile came to Legrand's face. "My, my. And here I'd been told you were thick skinned," he observed cruelly once the lengthy program had run its course. The arrow found its mark. His captive glared angrily at him, biting even harder on the gag in his mouth, a low growl rising in his throat.

"Activate _SENSOR TEST TWO_," Legrand ordered

"No," came the defiant reply

Legrand turned back to the technician, his face a study in anger. "What?" he said icily.

"I said no. This isn't research. It's torture, plain and simple," Inness replied firmly.

The Director's eyes narrowed and he moved to the console, reaching over and initiating the program himself. The pattern of activation changed, and Jason writhed in his bonds as the patches came to life in groups moving from his extremities to his torso and back again. The moment the program ended, he went limp, dazed and breathing heavily.

"What do you think?" Legrand asked mildly. "Do we have enough data on his Highness's tolerance levels yet?" He turned to the horrified Inness, who stared back in mute disbelief. "No? Test number three, then."

By this time, Jason could see a pattern developing and suspected what was to come. His eyes grew wide as Legrand's hand reached across the computer a second time. His fears were verified the moment the program began. The sensors were triggered in waves, moving up, down, and across his body. Completely helpless, the Alterran thrashed wildly, his screams of pain scarcely muffled by the gag. There was a brief pause as the program changed, the sensors coming on simultaneously, starting at a low intensity and steadily increasing until they burned like fire, causing Jason to go completely rigid, a scream of agony frozen in his throat as all the muscles in his body locked. His torment suddenly ceased and he went completely limp, exhausted, breathing heavily, and just barely conscious.

Legrand spun around, seeing the reason the program had ended so abruptly. Inness had terminated it.

"What do you think you're doing?" the Director demanded. "That was running perfectly."

Inness was outraged. "Perfectly! Are you insane! You'd've killed him if you'd let that run through. He stopped breathing at the end. Or hadn't you noticed?"

Legrand waved a hand dismissively, turning an evil glare in the slowly recovering prince's direction. "He's mine to do with as I please. I'm running my own programs now."

"Curtis, this is inhuman!" The incensed technician rose to his feet.

"I believe you're the one who pointed out that he's not human," Legrand countered smugly.

Inness glared at him. "No, but I am. And you can find somebody else to do your dirty work for you. I'm Chief Technician, _not _Chief Torturer." So saying, he stormed from the room.

Legrand's face clouded over with rage. He looked down at his slowly recovering prisoner, who feared his demented captor might take matters into his own hands and kill him right then and there. To his amazement, a broad smile suddenly parted Legrand's lips. "Well, well. It look's like you're going to have to wait, your Royal Highness." he said in an oddly polite manner. "I seem to have a domestic problem to sort out." Switching off the lights as he left, the Director followed after his Chief Technician, leaving the baffled Prince Jason alone in the dark.


	7. Plunged Into Madness

**Chapter Seven**

**Plunged Into Madness**

After leaving the mystified Prince Jason, Legrand went to his office, ordering security to "escort" Mr. Inness to his surgery immediately. Within minutes the protesting technician was dragged into the room. He had assumed his employer was planning to pitch yet another fit about insubordination and was puzzled when he saw Legrand in surgical scrubs. His bewilderment gave way to horror when the guards lifted him from the floor and onto the operating table. He fought back to no avail as the restraints were fastened over him, being just as powerless to escape as the Alterran he had left in the extraction room. "No!" he shouted as the straps were tightened, immobilizing him completely. "Curtis, you need me!"

"This is a fine time to think of that," came the unsympathetic reply.

As Legrand's nurse, Napea, began covering him with sheets, the helpless Inness was certain he was about to suffer the same fate as Prince Jason. "Curtis, please, I'm begging you. Don't put those things in my head."

"I wouldn't waste my time," Legrand snorted contemptuously. "I need you're skills, not the minuscule amount of knowledge in your brain."

"Wh…what are…you going to do to me, then?" came the meek inquiry.

"What do you think? I told you what would happen if you didn't keep your mouth shut."

Inness had been voicing his opinion and objections to the project a great deal of late, not liking the direction it had been taking. The irritated Director had responded by telling him if he did not keep quiet, he would cut out his tongue, which was exactly what he planned to do now.

Dr. Legrand moved a cart full of instruments over to the operating table, but it was not until he picked up an odd looking metal object of his own invention that his victim knew what was about to happen.

"No! For God's sake, Curtis! Please!" Inness fought the attempt to force the contraption into his mouth, only to make the mistake of opening it to plea for mercy. "Anyth—" The rest of his words were turned into muffled whines as the metal bit was jammed into place.

With a satisfied smile, Legrand started cranking the device open, forcing the Technician's jaws apart. Inness bit down to prevent this happening, a scream of pure terror issuing forth as the unrelenting metal bands started to win the battle.

"Oh, do stop making such a fuss," Legrand said blandly to his squirming captive. He noticed the veins in his victim's neck standing out, throbbing with every beat of his racing heart. Fascinated, he paused in his efforts to force the terrified man's jaws open, which only caused Inness to struggle all the more.

The Director dispassionately watched this display. He would have taken great joy in slitting the troublesome technician's throat right then and there, but unfortunately he still required his services. He ordered Napea to administer the anesthetic, and waited patiently as the struggling form grew weaker and weaker, finally going limp.

"That's better. Just relax. It'll all be over soon," Legrand purred and finished the job of forcing the immobilized man's jaws fully apart.

"Curtis, if I might make an observation?" Napea said in a low emotionless voice.

Intrigued, Curtis looked up. One of the reasons he liked Napea so much was that she rarely spoke, and when she did, it was always for a good reason. "Yes?"

The nurse pointed out that the procedure he was about to perform would cause undue delay, as Inness would need time to recuperate.

"What do you suggest?" he asked, an evil grin coming to his face when she replied, "If you want to keep him quiet, why don't you just cut his vocal cords?"

* * *

In the darkened computer room, Jason was beginning to wonder if he might actually have been abandoned. Was the scene with the sensors the precursor to something else or just a terror tactic? _A tactic that worked_, he thought with a shudder. Then he wondered if Legrand was planning to drive him insane by letting the probes do the work for him. Had he forgotten they went dead while he was connected into the helmet and the system dormant?

Closing his eyes, Jason fought to get stay in control of himself. He was uncertain as to how much time had passed since his abduction, but was certain a search would be underway for him. The only question in his mind was, how long would it be before the search was abandoned? When would the decision be made to give up? _No_, _Krystovan, you have to think positive_. _They'll find you. _Opening his eyes, he looked around the room as best he could, adding to his dark thoughts. _I just hope when they do, they find me alive._

After an hour, sheer boredom finally overtook the Alterran and he fell asleep. It turned out to be the first uninterrupted sleep he had enjoyed since the sessions began. It was the next morning when he was abruptly awakened as his captor came bursting into the room. Two security guards came in behind him flanking—Or were they carrying?—the Chief Technician. Because of the way the couch was positioned, Jason could just see across the room and was shocked when he saw Inness being chained to the console. Apparently the Director had sorted out his little domestic problem.

Legrand worked for several minutes at the computer before he turned his gaze across the room. The look made Jason stiffened visibly. _Now it's my turn_, he thought, closing his eyes and swallowing hard. The extraction helmet started humming above him and he winced as the implant probes came to life. Next the image translator flickered into life and he sighed resignedly. _Here we go again_, he thought.

Curtis came over to the couch and punched several commands into the computer before moving to stand over his prisoner. He seemed disappointed when the prince did not react at all. He pulled the gag from his mouth only to be further disappointed when Jason remained silent. "So docile today," Legrand observed, picking up a syringe. "Have you forgotten why you're here?"

"I'm not begging for mercy, Curtis," Jason said in as defiant a tone as he could manage. "I won't give you the satisfaction."

With a smug expression on his face, Legrand replied coldly, "Not now, perhaps. But you will. Believe me. _You will_." With that he administered yet another drug and watched in sadistic delight as the prince succumbed to its hallucinogenic properties.

The glassy eyed Inness jumped when the Director suddenly ordered him to begin the first program. Looking down at the console in front of him, he shakily complied.

Legrand's new regimen of sessions was now underway, its sole purpose being to drive Jason out of his mind. In addition to the hallucinogenic drugs, computer generated illusions were forced on the Alterran's consciousness. Some came in the form of surrealistic dreams while others were real situations that would spiral out of control. In conjunction with all this, the stimulator patches would be activated to produce pain that would add reality to the unreality of the images.

Powerless to stop the unrelenting assault on his mind and body, Jason eventually lost his grip on reality altogether, his hopes of rescue all but forgotten.


	8. The Argonauts

**Chapter Eight**

**The Argonauts**

The TARDIS materialized on the loading dock of what appeared to be an abandoned building. One among several other abandoned buildings. All the windows and loading bays on the wooden structures had been boarded up and they all looked in serious need of repainting. The only sign of life on the one where they had materialized was a single light that burned above the main door, which was also the only apparent way in.

Puzzled, the Doctor cautiously led the way to the main door. From what the Emperor had said, he expected to materialize near the grounds of Alexandria Foundation, or at least near the Sorenson Mansion. The last thing he expected was to find amid ruin of a warehouse district.

"The place looks deserted," Turlough observed as they passed through the unguarded main door. "Doctor, this can't be the right place. The Emperor must've made a mistake."

"He rarely does," the Time Lord replied mildly, looking down the empty main corridor.

"Well, there's no one here."

"Let's find out, shall we?" the Doctor grinned. He drew a deep breath and turned, intending to bellow out a greeting. Instead, he found himself looking down the barrel of a gun. "Ah, there you are," he said mildly. "How do you do? I'm the Doctor."

"This is private property, y'know," the young man with the gun said fiercely. "You need a pass to be here. You got a pass?"

The Doctor exchanged a mystified look with his companion. "Ah…well, no, actually. Where do we go about getting one?" he asked in a patient tone.

"The Commander'll know what to do with you," the youth said, nodding down the corridor. "That way."

With a resigned sigh, the Doctor and his companion went in the direction indicated. This was not the most promising of beginnings.

A dark-haired woman of about thirty appeared further on ahead. The sight of the little group made her stop dead in her tracks. "Jerry, what on earth are you doing?"

"I caught these two snooping around the main entrance," he reported proudly.

"Actually, you stumbled across us," the Doctor corrected sharply. "And we were _not_ snooping."

"Spies is what they are, Dr. Spencer," Jerry injected.

Dr. Spencer rolled her eyes, an exasperated sigh escaping her. "Oh, for heaven's sake, Jerry, do stop being ridiculous. Who would want to spy on us? And put that thing away before you hurt somebody."

"They ain't got no passes or…or nothin'!" the young man sputtered defensively, holstering his weapon. "I was takin' 'em to the Commander—"

"I'll take them. I'm going that way now."

Disappointed and obviously crestfallen, the sentry turned on his heel and strode off.

"I'm sorry about that," the woman said apologetically. "We've been here so long everybody's getting edgy. What news have you brought us?"

The Doctor raised an eyebrow. "News? I'm afraid you misunderstand. We're here to help." He introduced himself and his companion to the woman who turned out to be the Chief Medical Officer of the Argonauts, Dr. Amanda Spencer.

"You'd better talk to the Commander then," she sighed. "But don't be disappointed if he turns you away. Unless you have some special skill we can use, I'm afraid we've got more people than we need already."

"I think we may be of some small use to you," the Doctor said disarmingly, exchanging a knowing look with his companion.

As Dr. Spencer led the way, the Doctor noticed the interior of the building bore no resemblance to its exterior. There were no signs of decay as far as he could see. In fact, much of the equipment was state of the art. _Compliments of Constance Sorenson?_ he wondered.

The journey ended at what the Doctor assumed to be the nerve center of the operation. There were maps and papers scattered everywhere about the room. At the far end of an enormous conference table, a man stood studying a star chart, his back to the door. He wore the only military style uniform the Time Lord had seen thus far. Not to his great surprise, it was also one that he recognized, the Alterran Imperial Guard.

"Commander, we have two more volunteers," Amanda announced as she showed the time travelers in.

The Commander sighed and turned. His face revealed nothing of what was going on in his mind, which was a considerable amount, as he looked the unlikely pair up and down. "I don't suppose either of you has any military training, have you?"

The Time Lord grinned unabashedly, having recognized the man in the uniform immediately. "As a matter of fact, I've served under several rather prominent military leaders over the last few centuries."

"Oh? Beginning with Alexander the Great, no doubt," came the astringent reply.

"Among others."

"Now, look, I've no time for games—"

"Quite right," the Doctor agreed, his voice suddenly serious. He moved toward the head of the table, looking the officer in the eye. "Tell me, Commander Tolan, are you any closer to locating Prince Jason than you were eight weeks ago?"

The dumbfounded Commander's mouth dropped open. "Who are you?" he asked once he found his voice.

"My dear Tolan, I'm the Doctor."

The Alterran blinked. "The Doctor…" he repeated, not quite believing this sudden stroke of luck. "How did you know where to find me? We're a good six kilometers from the main house."

"Actually, I was on my way to the Foundation when I learned of your little venture."

Tolan's eyes flickered and the Doctor could see the obvious question behind his dark brown eyes. It was never spoken, however, and the Time Lord wondered if he knew the answer already. Suddenly the Commander asked an even more startling question. "Tell me, Doctor, have you come to lead us?"

* * *

"…and that's about all we know," Tolan concluded, having run down the fruitless efforts of the previous eight weeks. "We just seem to be going in circles."

The Doctor and Turlough were seated across from him at the conference table. They exchanged a disappointed look. Even with this dedicated group working on the case there was still nothing more to go on, each lead having turned into a dead end.

Or so it seemed. At that moment another person from the Doctor's past came bursting into the room, this being none other than Constance Sorenson herself. She was so excited that she failed to notice the Commander had guests. "Tolan, you have got to see this!" she said excitedly, slipping a laser disk into a reader. "I think it's—Oh!" Finally registering there were others present, she quickly apologized.

"You're just in time," Tolan said as he got to his feet. He was about to introduce the Doctor, whom he thought she would not recognize, when, to his amazement, Constance gasped, "Doctor!" glancing over at him and then back at the grinning Time Lord. "You are the Doctor, aren't you?" she added hesitantly.

"That I am, Constance," the Doctor replied, rising to his feet. "And this is—"

"Turlough, yes?" she said delightedly, to the astonishment of all present.

"Now how on earth did you know that?" Tolan wanted to know

"This." Constance indicated the disk in the reader. "I was ninety-nine percent sure about it. Now I'm positive."

"Connie, what are you talking about?"

"I'm talking about finding HH, Tolan. This disk is an honest to goodness lead. Here we've been scratching our heads and looking under rocks, and they've been passing this disk around the Research Department for more than two weeks." As she spoke, she switched on the reader, the screen displaying nothing but disjointed images and static.

"And just what are we to make of that?" Tolan asked tersely.

Undaunted, Constance went on, "The general consensus is that this is a multiple image recorded in conjunction with a complex combination of other data. For reasons those geniuses couldn't determine, it's unreadable by conventional means."

"And you call that a lead?" Tolan said acidly.

Throwing him a dark look, Constance pressed on, "Somebody had the sense to run it on Evan Spencer's new imaging system. It was able to determine that the blocks of data pertained specifically to the image recorded with it. Molecular makeup, genetic codes, visual references, names and the like."

"A kind of index file," Turlough injected.

"Exactly." Miss Sorenson made another entry on the machine as the Time Lord drew nearer. "It sounds familiar, doesn't it, Doctor?" she asked.

The Doctor was about to ask the point in all this but was cut off as the woman beside him hurriedly continued her story. "When those so-called experts gave up, I gave it a shot. Only this time I told the computer the extract was a medical recording. Just look what it came up with." She stood aside as an image slowly came into focus. It was that of the Doctor himself, all of his biological data scrolling along side the image. With the touch of a key, Turlough's image appeared on the screen along with his pertinent statistics.

"We're all in there," Constance announced triumphantly. "Names, dates, biological data. The works."

The Doctor nodded. "That's from Jason alright."

"A major portion of his personal scans I should think," Miss Sorenson agreed. Seeing the surprised look on the Doctor's face, she smiled knowingly. "Yes, I know about it. HH told me so I wouldn't feel he had a hold over me. As if I could!"

"HH?"

"His Highness."

"Not HRH?"

Constance gave a small smile. "I dropped the _R_ as a joke. You know how Jason hates titles. _Especially_ his own."

Tolan was in no mood for deviations. "Where did that come from?"

"It arrived by messenger, apparently," Constance replied, adding angrily, "And it was made practically under our noses. At an obscure little research center right here on Aegis."

Tolan was already halfway across the room. "Well, what are we standing around for? We've a rescue to organize."

"Wouldn't you at least like to know where it is?"

"You've already told me. Aegis," he called over his shoulder. "You can tell me the specifics after I've notified the Aegin authorities."


	9. Rescue

**Chapter Nine**

**Rescue**

Less than six hours after learning the prince's location, the Argonauts arrived at Legrand's Research Park. As their shuttle was landing, another craft could be seen lifting off in the glow of the setting sun. A momentary wave of panic flashed through the ranks. Had they come this far only to have the prince spirited away before their very eyes?A scan of the departing ship showed only one lifeform aboard, quelling their fears and renewing their hopes.

The rescue party gained entry to the grounds without incident and moved cautiously into the building, finding no one about.

"Perhaps they've all gone home for the night," Turlough said dryly as Tolan brought the band to a halt. The Commander turned to Amanda, who was using her hand held medical scanner to try and pick up Jason's life signs. "Got him!" she announced happily. "He's all the way on the other side of the building." Looking up, she added warningly, "And he's not alone."

"How many?" Tolan wanted to know.

Scowling at the little instrument, Dr. Spencer was forced to concede that she did not know. The readings from the rescue party were interfering with the sensors. As she tried to clear the interference, she discovered something else. "Tolan, he's in pain!" she gasped, looking up sharply.

The Alterran officer nodded but could not be persuaded to hurry. He sent two of his men on ahead and waited, his radio coming to life a few minutes later. The scouts reported finding two bodies in an office. The Commander ordered them to wait and very slowly led the group towards the computer room, his eyes darting to every shadow. The Doctor observed this display in admiration, reflecting on how little the officer had changed. He was still a credit to his training.

* * *

As a part of his revenge, Legrand had left Jason connected into the active computer, causing a dangerous imbalance in his body's bioelectric field. As his customized program stretched into days, he had watched his prisoner's torment with sadistic delight and taunted him during the interlude between sessions. At one point he threatened to reinitiate the sensitivity program if Jason did not beg for his life, and finally got his wish, listening in smug satisfaction as the Alterran did just that.

When the Argonauts arrived, Jason was in the midst of another session. Once they reached the far side of the enormous building, they did not need Amanda's scanner to find the extraction room. His screams of agony resounded throughout the entire section of the building. Bursting into the room that had become nothing more than a high-tech torture chamber the group came to an abrupt halt, starring in an appalled and horrified silence.

Across the room, the enslaved Inness saw the drawn weapons and immediately cowered behind the desk, his eyes wide as saucers. As far as he knew, Legrand had sent these people to kill him…or worse.

Constance was the first to recover. "Shut it down," she ordered, striding across the room.

The terrified Inness waved his hands, gesturing helplessly at the console. The whole time he kept his eyes fixed on the weapon in Tolan's hand.

"Shut this contraption down," the Commander ordered, causing the technician to flinch back. "Do you hear me?"

Amanda took a step forward, scanner in hand. She caught her breath and looked up sharply, saying in a subdued voice, "He probably can, Tolan, he just can't answer you. His vocal cords have been severed."

Constance stopped dead and turned, giving her a stunned look before continuing to the computer, only to be stunned again when she arrived. "Tolan, he's been chained to the computer!" Looking at the pitiful figure before her, she said softly, "You're as much a victim as HH, aren't you?" She reached for the controls only to have her hands grabbed by the frantic Inness. He quickly typed out a message, explaining that if she attempted to stop the program, Jason would die instantly.

"Was that Legrand's way of making sure you didn't stop it?" she asked, receiving a nod in reply. She looked over to the others before assuring the terrified man that he would not be harmed.

A sheet lay in a crumpled heap on the floor and the Doctor used it to cover the naked Alterran's writhing form as Dr. Spencer set to work examining the extraction couch's control system.

Inness tugged at Constance's sleeve before tapping out another message. "The sensor patches are pain stimulators on a system separate from the helmet. It doesn't matter if the program runs through. Curtis has already driven him insane."

Constance read the message aloud, turning a horrified look in Tolan's direction.

As if to verify Inness' last statement, Jason let out an animal-like wail followed by a series of unintelligible grunts. His eyes were wide open and darted wildly inside his head, seeing only what was being projected via the implants. The image translator was suddenly a blaze of flames, several distorted figures writhing within. Jason responded with a scream of anguish, the restraints cutting further into his flesh as he fought to escape the terrifying image.

_A vision of hell_, the Doctor thought darkly. He turned his gaze to the Alterran's tortured form and found himself repulsed by the sight, the creature before him bore little resemblance to the friend he had come to save. There were dark circles under Jason's eyes, his face drawn and haggard, a witness to his lack of rest and failing health. Curls of white hair stuck out from beneath the extraction helmet, which only added to his ghoulish appearance.

"Oh, Jason," the Time Lord breathed in horror. "I'm so sorry…"

The equally revolted Turlough went to the main computer and tore the bundles connecting the stimulator patches from their panels, ending the torment they were inflicting on his friend in a rather permanent manner.

The Alterran was oblivious to the presence of his rescuers, being completely caught up in the computer-generated illusion. It was not until the Doctor began removing the patches that reality started to break through, the Time Lord's powerful time aura assaulting his senses with every touch; each assault causing Jason to jump and moving him one step closer to the real world.

The Doctor had no idea he was doing anything more than stop the pain being inflicted on his helpless friend. In some places, the patches had burned themselves into the Alterran's flesh and could not be removed without taking skin with them. The Doctor thought Jason's reactions were to this rather than himself and he broke off the leads rather than inflict further damage on his friend.

Eventually the constant aural assault broke through the haze and for the first time since the new sessions began Jason was able to break the connection himself, the frightening image on the translator dissolving into static. A moment later his eyes seemed to clear, and in a voice that was hoarse from his continual screams of pain he said one thing before passing out. "Doctor, help me."

The Time Lord was so startled he actually jumped. He looked over at his equally astonished companion, who had been assisting in removing the stimulators. Turlough turned to Amanda, who was still studying the control panel near the head of the unit. She knew that one false move would mean Jason's life.

"We've got to get him out of this thing," the Doctor hissed angrily, reaching up to the extraction helmet only to snatch his hand away when Constance and Amanda cried "No!" in unison.

"He may've broken the connection, but this thing says the program is still running," Constance informed. "If you pull that off now, you could overload the circuits, or cause a lethal surge of feedback." From beside her, she felt another tug and looked down to see Inness tapping out yet another message. Apparently Legrand had safeguarded himself against the technician stopping the programs or disconnecting Jason in-between sessions by transferring all command functions to the extraction unit. Inness, in his captivity, could not reach it and had been forced to monitor the procedure he had objected to so vocally. He could, however, instruct the Argonauts as to how the system could be shut down, starting with the extraction helmet.

Mentally crossing her fingers Amanda carefully followed the instructions relayed by Constance. Once the program was terminated, she started on the extraction helmet. Each completed entry caused an implant prong to retract with a snap.

While this was going on the Doctor was removing the restraints from the unconscious Alterran. The instant all the prongs were disconnected, he pulled the helmet away in anger, inwardly wishing he could throw it across the room. He then wrapped the bruised, emaciated figure in the sheet he had used to cover him before gently lifting him into his arms. He exchanged a look of mutual outrage with Commander Tolan as he left the room, taking his precious cargo to the waiting transport ship, Amanda and Turlough at his heels.


	10. A Grave Prognosis

**Chapter Ten**

**A Grave Prognosis**

The Doctor placed the unconscious Jason on a bed in the ship's sickbay, assisting Amanda in replacing the sheet with a gown. He looked mournfully down at his friend, his body still twitching despite being disconnected from the computer. Whether this was caused by drugs, the implants, or muscles spasms he could not tell.

"Amanda," he said at last, "would you be so good as to run a complete chemical analysis for me?"

"What the devil do you want that for?"

The Time Lord sighed heavily. "So we can see exactly what they've been giving him," he said impatiently. "Even _I_ can see he's been drugged. With what, and with how much is what we need to find out." So saying, he strode from the room.

The Medical Officer opened her mouth to object only to be stopped by Turlough. "Just do it. You won't get anywhere arguing when he's like that."

Amanda threw a disgusted look in the direction the Doctor had taken before doing as he asked. Muttering to herself, she wondered who he was to warrant instant command status. He had appeared out of nowhere less than twelve hours ago, and now here he was issuing orders. More amazing still was the fact that Tolan was allowing it to happen.

Dr. Spencer's reverie was broken when she went to draw the blood sample. She had not had the opportunity to thoroughly examine Jason's injuries until that very moment, and what she found stunned her. His arms, legs, and torso had been cut and heavily bruised by the restraints, dozens of needle marks dotted his arms and his entire body was covered with what looked like burns caused by the sensor patches, some of which were still fused to his skin where the Doctor had left them. Amanda looked at these marks of torture in anger, hating the fact that she had to add another bruise to the already ample collection. "You bastard, Curtis," she whispered.

The Doctor had scarcely arrived on the flight deck when Tolan called to ask if he could be persuaded to return to the computer room. It seemed Inness had become, if it were possible, overly cooperative and no one understood the wealth of information he was supplying. Tolan knew that while Constance was familiar with the Lazarus Process itself, she did not possess the scientific knowledge the Time Lord had in abundance.

The Doctor agreed to return the moment he had a status report on Jason's condition. He went back to the sickbay to find Amanda had finished her analysis. She looked up when he entered, handing him the printout without a word. He looked down the list of foreign chemicals in the Alterran's system in anger and amazement. "It's a good thing he's not human," the appalled Time Lord said quietly, "or he'd be dead by now."

"There's no guaranteeing he'll survive now," Amanda informed devastatingly. "It'll take days, maybe even weeks, before that mess is cleared out of his system. And that's the least of his problems. His physical condition is…well, to say it's marginal would be generous." She threw up her hands. "I just don't have the equipment I need to treat him properly."

"Yes, you do," came Constance authoritative voice from the door. She had arrived just in time to overhear the pessimistic prognosis. "The entire Alexandria Foundation is at your disposal. Whatever you need is there. And if it isn't, I'll get it."

"Before you go ordering equipment," Amanda said soberly, "I think you should take a look at this." She pointed to the diagnostic screen beside her that displayed a three-dimensional image of the scan she had made of Jason's scull. It looked like someone had driven long spikes into it.

"What are those?" Turlough asked in distaste.

"Implant probes," Amanda announced, glancing back in Miss Sorenson's direction. "And they're different from the ones in the documents you showed me."

Constance made no reply other than to curse under her breath.

"I don't understand any of this," Turlough said helplessly. "What's the point of those things?"

"In theory, they're supposed to aid in the extraction of mental information," Constance explained.

"Unfortunately," Dr. Spencer chimed in, "they don't work the way they're supposed to. They continue to stimulate brain activity even after they've been disconnected from the computer. Look." She nodded over to the encephalograph monitor. "He's practically comatose but portions of his brain are just as active as if he were wide awake." Shaking her head, she added, "It's no wonder he's in the state he's in."

"Can they be deactivated?" the Doctor asked.

"I don't know. Not without knowing more about their composition, and certainly not here."

"Then you'd better take him to the Foundation immediately," Constance stated flatly. "I'll get hold of Tolan and let him know you're going."

"I'll tell him," the Doctor said from his place by the door. "I'm on my way to the computer room now. Mr. Inness, it seems, is so cooperative they can't make head nor tail of what he's trying to tell them."

Miss Sorenson shook her head. "Give me a minute to contact the Foundation and I'll join you. Maybe I can help translate."

"I'd better get HH ready to move, then," Amanda injected, going into the next room.

The Doctor and Turlough suddenly found themselves alone and the Time Lord took advantage of the opportunity to speak with his companion privately. "Turlough, I want you to go back to the Foundation with Amanda."

"Don't you think I'll just get in the way?" the young man asked logically.

The Doctor ignored the question. "As far as I can tell, other than Constance, Tolan and myself, you're the only other person here Jason knows and trusts. In his present state of mind, he'll probably rely on his scanning to distinguish reality from hallucinations." Throwing a quick glance toward the exit, he added darkly, "And I'm not entirely convinced he's safe. Even with the Argonauts."

"That ship we saw leaving," his companion whispered, echoing the Time Lord's thoughts.

"Exactly. So stay as close as you can. Sleep on the floor if you have to—"

"Alright, I get the point," Turlough interrupted. "You don't have to over dramatize."

The Doctor's solemn expression did not change. "I'm perfectly serious. Until we know more, I don't want to take any chances. I'll join you as soon as I've finished up here."

Despite the fact that his companion was less than pleased at being assigned as Jason's personal bodyguard, the Doctor knew he would not fail him. Turlough was staunchly loyal to those few individuals who had earned his trust, among whom Jason was one of the chosen few. Was this the reason the Emperor had called the boy aside? Or was it for a reason yet to be revealed?

* * *

While the Doctor was at the shuttle Tolan ordered the building secured and a thorough search was conducted. When the final reports came back, nearly twenty bodies had been found scattered throughout the facility. Excluding Inness, Legrand had left none of his staff alive.

The Aegin authorities took charge of the unresisting Inness, his status as kidnapper or victim to be determined at a later date. Through a bit of string pulling, Tolan was able to take charge of the Research Center, securing unlimited access to the building for himself and those with him.

While the Alterran officer was wrangling with the authorities, the Doctor poured over the extraction equipment, being both revolted and fascinated by it. He realized, with a bit of a shock, that with a few refinements the process might actually have worked. It could have been used to help those with severe emotional problems instead of being used to create them.

Before he was taken away, Inness informed Tolan, to his amazement, that Dr. Legrand had been working for someone else, his revenge on Prince Jason being a by-product of the kidnapping not the motive. Unfortunately, the technician never knew who the financial backers were and, therefore, could not supply a name. Nor did he know the identity of Legrand's most recent set of backers.

"Terrific," Constance said in exasperation. "Now what do we do? How do we find out who hired him? Go through all the disks until we find a common link?" She exchanged a tired look with the Doctor and Tolan, who were no more thrilled at the thought of this monumental task than was she.

"Mr. Inness was good enough to show me how to use the image translator," the Doctor said in a voice that was a great deal more cheerful than he felt. "I'm going to need that translation program you used to read them, though, Constance."

"Done," she replied without hesitation. "Anything else?"

With a wry smile, the Time Lord replied, "Yes. If the three of us are going to be stranded here for the duration, I'd also like my TARDIS."


	11. Vigil

**Chapter Eleven**

**Vigil**

"So what's the status on removing the probes?" Turlough asked as Amanda led the way through the halls of the Alexandria Foundation's Medical Center.

"They're not as benign as they look," she replied mildly. "And at this point in time, we don't know enough about them to even consider it."

"Not yet?" the young man said in a slightly accusing voice. "You've been running tests half the night. You must know _something_ by now."

"I know they're very dangerous," the Medical Officer snapped defensively. "And they're nothing like the designs on file. Until we know more, removing them could cause more damage than leaving them in."

"_Damage?_" Turlough seized the word. "What kind of damage?"

"I'm not sure about that, either. According to the review board's report, which ironically was written by HH himself, the implants have the potential of causing such an imbalance in the brain that a person could completely lose touch with reality, eventually going insane." Pausing, she added gravely, "For all we know, that's happened to him already."

Turlough was appalled. "What makes you say that?"

"You were there, Turlough. You heard what Inness said. HH was already out of his mind. And, to be frank, I think he's gotten worse since we took him off the computer."

"Great. But that still doesn't prove he's crazy. I saw the list of drugs you showed the Doctor. Hallucinogens, isn't that what you said?"

"I know, I know. He has enough drugs in him to start a small pharmacy. And it could take weeks before his system's clear enough to make a determination."

"Any other encouraging thoughts?" Turlough asked darkly.

They stopped outside a room with a large _NO ENTRY_ sign on the door, this being the isolation room where Jason had been confined. An animal-like growl issued forth as Amanda opened the door and Turlough looked hesitantly inside, seeing the heavily bandaged prince secured in double restraints and struggling with what little strength he had to free himself. The image of the very serious—and very rational—King Jason flashed through his mind as he watched the thrashing form. Finding his voice at last he asked, "Why do you have him hooked up to so many monitors?" One wall seemed to be covered with them. When he received no answer, the young man turned back to the silent Medical Officer. "Amanda?"

Dr. Spencer cleared her throat. "While we were cleaning him up he…well, he…" Drawing a deep breath, she said, "He had a seizure. Not a bad one, but a seizure nonetheless. I think the implants caused it, but…"

"You're not sure."

"No, I'm not." Looking Turlough in the eye, she said quietly, "No offense, Turlough, but you don't have the medical training to—"

"I know a seizure when I see one!"

"Yes, but do you know what to do if he has another?" the physician countered. At the same time, she motioned to the attendant in the room to leave. "That's what the monitors are for. If anything else unforeseen happens, we'll know immediately."

Turlough was slightly annoyed with himself for not having realized the obvious sooner.

"On top of all injuries from the patches, he's got pulled and torn ligaments from all that fighting, and gashes down to the bone in some places from the restraints," Amanda informed. "But he's so out of his mind he doesn't even seem to feel the pain anymore. Just what comes through the implants, apparently. I suppose we can be grateful for that."

Turlough turned back to look into the room and sighed heavily, spinning around when Dr. Spencer said, "You don't have to do this, you know."

"Yes, I do. Jason's my friend. I—"

"I know he's your friend, Turlough!" Amanda snapped unexpectedly. "You don't have to keep throwing it in my face."

"What?"

"You two just waltz in here and in one day—" She stopped herself, taking a moment to calm down. "It must be so easy coming in at the end of—"

"Easy! You think this is _easy?_ Finding my best friend—" Turlough could feel the rage growing inside him. "Who are you to judge me? You don't even know me!" Not waiting for a reply he stormed into the room, slamming the door behind him. Amanda tried to apologize, but he ignored her, leaning against the door and waiting until he was certain she had gone.

Turlough remained at the door a long time before he drew a deep breath and looked up. Friend or no friend, he did not want to do this in the least and found himself wishing the Doctor were there so he would not have to maintain his heartbreaking vigil alone. Glancing around the room, he was pleased to see a bed had been provided. _I hope you're not too disappointed, Doctor, when you learn I didn't have to sleep on the floor_. Someone had also had the forethought to accommodate him with a desk and reclining easy chair, the latter of which he dropped in to. Along with the monitoring equipment, Turlough saw a barrier generator high in the corner of the room and sat watching the blue light dancing across its opening. As long as the tiny device was operating, he was safe from Jason transmuting into anything nasty.

It was frighteningly obvious the Alterran was beyond reason and Turlough doubted he was even aware of what was going on and decided not to go near him. What remained of the night passed without any sign of improvement. Jason would either sleep or lose consciousness for a short time only to awaken to a hallucination during which he would struggle wildly against his bonds. Since sleeping during this ongoing upheaval was impossible, Turlough did not even try. He had found drawing supplies in the desk and spent his time sketching the extraordinary events of the past day.

Tolan sent his Lieutenant, at the Doctor's request, so his companion he would not have to stay on twenty-four hour duty in his vigil and could get some rest himself. At first Turlough was suspicious of the seemingly too willing Lieutenant Fane, until he learned that the officer also happened to be Jason's ward whom he had practically raised single-handed.

The second day passed with no sign of improvement. As did the next. And then the next. Jason's condition was further complicated by a series of seizures and on one occasion it was so violent Turlough was afraid his friend might die. By the end of the fourth day, Turlough was beginning to wonder if he had dreamt the encounter with the Alterran's future self. It was not until the pre-dawn hours of the morning of the fifth day that things seemed to change for the better. He had dozed off in the chair, awakening with a start when the sketchpad dropped from his lap. He stood up and stretched, tossing the pad onto the desk. At the same time, he noticed that Jason was awake. Since this was the first time the Alterran had returned to his senses without immediately pitching fit, Turlough was intrigued and went cautiously to the bedside.

"Now what?" Jason asked contemptuously, his voice weak and scarcely above a whisper. "Projecting…a little…reality today?"

Stunned by the calmness with which this inquiry was made, Turlough stammered out, "Uh… no, actually. The drugs—"

"I know about…the drugs," the prince hissed, pulling at the restraints in frustration. "You're using them…to keep me here. To…destroy my mind."

"No, it's not like that at all. We're trying to help you." Turlough had no way of knowing this was the worst thing he could possibly have said.

"Help me! You're not helping me, you're killing me!" Jason started to thrash in his bonds once again. "Damn you, Legrand! You're driving me out of my mind! Are you happy?"

"Jason, stop it!" Turlough commanded in a voice that surprised even him. "Stop and listen to me. You've been pumped so full of drugs you don't know what you're saying. You're being forced to hallucinate. Do you hear me? _Forced!_ You are not mad."

Stunned by this totally unexpected outburst, Jason stopped fighting and stared up at the blurry figure standing over him. "Wh…what…did you say?" he asked in a small voice, struggling to focus his blurred vision.

Turlough sighed in relief when the question came in a normal tone. "I said you're not mad." He took hold of his friend's hand to allow him to scan him. "And I'm not Legrand. I'm Turlough."

Not quite believing what was happening was real, and almost afraid to proceed, Jason squeezed the hand inside his own. It was warm and solid and squeezed back. "Turlough!" he said with a small sob. "It's you. It really is you." There was no doubting the aura registering on his senses.

"That's what I've been trying to tell you."

"Don't just stand there! Get me out of here!"

Turlough made no reply, wondering how, or even if, he could explain the situation. Would this period of lucidity last? For all he knew, a fit of hysteria might begin at any moment. "Jason, you're not a prisoner anymore…" he began slowly.

"What are you talking about? Look at me!" the Alterran cried, pulling at the straps holding him immobile. "I'm not exactly free as a bird here. I can't move!"

Turlough decided on a different tack. "I didn't want to tell you this," he said in a purposely hesitant voice, "but…well, you're in a kind of…detox."

"Detox…?" came the puzzled reply. "You have to tie me down for that?"

"Jason, you're a Healer. If you had a patient going through severe withdrawal, what would you do?"

With a sigh, Jason replied, "I'd restrain them."

A satisfied smile came to Turlough's face. He had managed to get through this crisis without a hitch. To his chagrin a monitor let out a beep indicating the activation of an implant. As if to verify this, Jason winced, a small cry escaping him, his grip on Turlough's hand tightening as the fear within him grew. "No, not again," he moaned. "Please, not again."

"It's alright. It's just the implants," his friend reassured.

Jason closed his eyes and shivered as terror swept over him. "No. I'm going insane and you just don't want to tell me."

Turlough was shocked when tears started streaming down his friend's face, his fear sending him plummeting into a pit of despair. "Jason, I've already told you, you're not crazy," he soothed gently. "You know I wouldn't lie to you about something like that."

The prince wanted desperately to believe him, but simply could not put his thoughts together. "I'm…so ccold," he said in a pitiful voice, his body trembling badly.

Considering he was wearing almost nothing but bandages, Turlough was not surprised. He had to pry his hand loose in order to get another blanket from across the room. He covered the shivering Alterran, taking him by the hand again. "You'll be alright once all that stuff is out of your system. You'll see."

"No, Turlough, I can't see," Jason said in a quiet, frightened voice. "Everything's a blur."

Turlough hushed him, squeezing his hand. "That's okay. Right now, you don't need to see," he said calmly. "You need to sleep."


	12. Awake At Last

**Chapter Twelve**

**Awake At Last**

The next time Jason awoke he was completely incoherent, and Turlough wondered if the brief period of lucidity had been a fluke. As the drugs continued to wear off, however, the periods of semi-clarity became more and more frequent. Eventually Jason's violent, nightmarish episodes ceased and Turlough asked, (for what seemed the hundredth time) if he might be released from his restraints, if for no other reason then to allow his injuries to heal more fully.

Dr. Spencer consulted with the medical staff who had been assisting in treating the prince before agreeing—if only partially. When Turlough was alone in the room, the unstable Alterran's wrists and ankles would be loosely secured, allowing him to move slightly but not rise from the bed. In-between times, the staff would work on getting him back on his feet.

Despite this apparent progress, Jason still had the probes to contend with, and unlike the drugs, they did not diminish or fade away. Their ongoing activity interrupted his sleep, blurred his vision, and made him so hypersensitive that staff members were forced to wear gloves when working with him, Turlough and Fane being the only ones able to touch him without causing him excruciating pain.

One night a memory came in the form of a nightmare and Jason awoke in a panic. Somehow he managed to pull one of his hands free, going on to free himself from the other bindings. He went over the side of his bed as Turlough appeared just in time to catch him as he fell to the floor.

"You've only just managed to stand up and take a few steps," Turlough admonished mildly. "You'll have to wait a bit before you start skydiving."

Badly shaken, Jason sat clinging to his friend a moment before allowing himself to be returned to the safety of his bed. "I must be crazy," he said at last. "I don't even know what I'm running from."

"Don't be so melodramatic. You just had a bad dream," his friend scolded gently. "Here, let me get you some water. It'll make you feel better." Disengaging himself from the trembling prince, he went to get a glass of water.

Jason had his doubts about this and sighed heavily, leaning back against the upraised head of his bed. _Now there's wishful thinking_, he thought darkly. _I can't_ _see straight. I can't think straight. I can't even follow what's going on half the time. How's a drink of water going to help? Will it stop this incessant buzzing in my head? Will it stop—?_ He sighed again, feeling completely overwhelmed and uncertain of everything. Well, perhaps not everything. He was absolutely certain about Turlough, whose ever-present aura verified his existence in the realm of reality.

An orderly and two security guards came bursting into the room at that moment, the prince's tumble having disconnected him from the monitors and causing panic in the Medial Wing. Seeing the Alterran free of his restraints, the appalled orderly gasped, "Turlough, what do you think you're doing?"

"Isn't it obvious, Wells?" came the caustic reply. "I'm getting Jason a drink."

"Are you nuts! If he reverts, he could kill you."

"How? By drowning me?"

Were his head clearer, Jason would have found this exchange amusing. Instead he found the unfamiliar voice terrifying and his grip on his friend tightened as he tried to maintain his questionable grip on reality. "Turlough, who is that?" he asked shakily. "What's happening?"

"It's alright. It's just someone who's just as afraid of you as you are of them."

"I doubt that. I can't even…sit up without help."

"He's rational!" Wells gasped. "When did that happen?"

Turlough chose not to respond directly, giving the orderly a baleful look. "You've a reason for being here, I trust?" he said caustically. The words were barely out of his mouth when he felt Jason sag beside him. Had he deduced the men were there to return him to his restraints? If so, it meant his friend was thinking more clearly than even he himself had given him credit.

When Wells did not respond, the young man glared at him. "Are you here to check the monitors?" He gave Jason another sip of water, throwing a warning glance in the direction of the two guards. He had only just managed to calm his friend down. The last thing he needed was for these three to panic him again.

"What? Oh, yeah, the monitors," Wells said, understanding at last. "The alarms went off and we thought—" A withering look from Turlough stopped him cold. "One of the wires must've come loose," he concluded meekly.

"I fell," the embarrassed Jason said in a small voice. "I must've…pulled everything out."

"Don't worry," Turlough soothed gently. "Wells will have you fixed up in no time."

Still clinging to his friend's hand, the prince leaned back, forcing himself to relax as his monitors were reconnected. It was not until that moment that he realized he was completely exhausted, not having the strength to resist even if he chose to. Closing his eyes, he resigned himself to the inevitable fact that he was about to be tied down again, and was sound asleep before Wells even finished.

Turlough pulled himself free of the sleeping Alterran, glancing over at the guards at the door. Now was the time to ask—No, demand!—that Jason be freed of his restraints and moved to a normal room. A place where he could see outside. Leaving the orderly and guards to look after Jason, Turlough went to Amanda, who was flatly against the idea. She feared it would be unsafe for the prince to be exposed to the turmoil of the outside world. Dr. Thorson, Head of the Foundation's Medical Center, disagreed and promptly overruled her. When she tried to protest, he responded by pulling rank. She may have been the Argonauts' Chief Medical Officer, but they were now in _his_ facility. The decision was no longer hers.

"He's my patient!" Amanda protested.

"Not anymore," Thorson countered. "I'll be taking over the case."

Dr. Spencer was incredulous. "You can't do that!"

"I most certainly—"

"You don't know the first thing about the case. You've been gone for nearly a month. You can't just waltz in here and expect me to meekly hand over the Crown Prince of Tel-Shye! No way. The only reason you want this is to score points with the review board he happens to chair."

As the altercation progressed, Turlough felt a little guilty for having triggered the obvious power struggle. He may have gotten his wish, but it seemed to have come at Amanda's expense. "I'm supposed to contact the Doctor today," he injected innocently, "and let him know how things are going. Perhaps I should ask Constance if—"

Dr. Thorson's reaction brought a smile to Amanda's face. "There's no need to bother Miss Sorenson," he blustered. "I'm sure we can work this out amicably." As much as he wanted to score points with Prince Jason, he wanted to score points with Constance twice as bad. As head of the Foundation, she literally held his career in her hands, and the fact that Turlough called her by name, something she allowed few to do, was significant to the social climbing Thorson.

Dr. Spencer knew this as well and threw an appreciative look in Turlough's direction before saying, "Give my regards to Constance when you talk to her." Turning pointedly to Thorson, she said, "I'll be looking in on _my_ patient as soon as he's settled in."

* * *

Prince Jason was relocated, monitors and all, to the Royal Suite of the Sorenson Mansion. He was only vaguely aware of the journey, the jostling bringing him close to the surface of consciousness where a soothing voice would assure him all was well and he would submerge. His mind wrote off the experience as yet another hallucination, one of the few pleasant ones. When he finally broke the surface of consciousness, he was surprised and delighted to find himself out of isolation and no longer tied down.

Despite the fact that the suite contained two bedrooms, the prince's hospital bed had been placed in the main room facing a large sliding glass door leading to a balcony. It was there, for the first time in months, that Jason saw the outside world, albeit rather fuzzily.

"I wish it were a nicer day for you," Turlough said mildly as they watched the torrential downpour going on outside.

"Oh, Turlough, please, don't apologize," Jason replied softly. "It's daylight. It's…wonderful." Glancing around, he observed, "And it's not a hospital room."

"No," his friend grinned. "They were hoping this would be quieter."

Outside, lightning suddenly flashed, causing Jason to wince, the bright light hurting his sensitive eyes. His hands went to his ears in anticipation of the thunderclap that followed. "So much for quiet," he muttered softly.

Seeing his friend absently twisting his curls, Turlough informed suddenly, "They cut your hair before they brought you up. I hope you don't mind. Someone thought you wouldn't want it looking so scraggly now that you're out of isolation."

Thinking this meant the probes would be visible Jason was appalled. He ran a hand through his hair and was relieved to find it was still long enough to cover the implant caps. He did not know as yet that his normally black hair had been transformed into the snow-white tangle he had borne since rescue. He did, however, wonder how anyone would think something as trivial as the length of his hair would concern him. It was so…

Struck by the insanely incongruous action, Jason burst forth in the first fit of genuine laughter since his kidnapping.

"What's so funny?" the puzzled Turlough asked.

It took several minutes before the Alterran was able to explain, after which his friend also succumbed to laughter.

* * *

When Amanda came to check on her patient she found him sleeping peacefully, which totally amazed her. She had expected to find him confused and frightened, not nearly this sedate. She immediately apologized to Turlough, who had obviously been correct in his diagnosis of what his friend needed.

As time passed, Jason's emotional peaks and valleys continued to level off, but the probes continued to affect his vision and made concentrating difficult. They also had an adverse affect on his normally reliable, ofttimes phenomenal memory. Through it all, however, Turlough remained steadfastly at his side, calming and reassuring him whenever lucidity seemed to be slipping away.

During the periods when Jason did manage to doze off, Turlough continued with his drawing, his idle sketching eventually producing a very impressive portfolio.


	13. Spiraling Back Into Madness

**Chapter Thirteen **

**Spiraling Back Into Madness**

Since the time of the rescue, the Doctor and Constance had been pouring over Legrand's extracts; the image translator and logs having been invaluable in narrowing down the reasons behind the kidnapping. The reasons, but not the perpetrator. The identity of that person, or persons, was still a mystery.

Tolan had spent his time running background checks on as many of the people he could identify in the personnel files and office documents. He too had come up empty. At times Constance had to assist him in deciphering some of the paperwork, her extensive business background having proven invaluable.

The three had utilized the TARDIS as their base of operations, living quarters, and communication center. The latter was due to the fact that the equipment in Legrand's office no longer functioned. For reasons known only to himself, the Commander had become obsessed with getting the dinosaur working again, hoping it would provide Legrand's broadcast frequency and/or his employer's. The Doctor and Constance eventually gave up trying to dissuade him and ended up assisting him in achieving his goal.

The Doctor had wedged himself into an open panel and was checking circuits while Constance and Tolan manned the control boards. He was in the process of extracting himself when he found a loose wire and reconnected it, being rewarded with a jolt of power that sent him flying. Although slightly stunned, the Time Lord assured the others he was unharmed. Then something happened that stunned them all. A recording started to playback Legrand's last transmission.

A crackle of static roared from the speaker and an unintelligible voice hissed forth. "Say again," Legrand was heard saying. "Who's coming?"

"The Argonauts," the crackling voice replied.

Legrand cursed under his breath. "How did they find this location?"

"…don't know." (More static.) "…get out…be there before nightfall."

"I'll be gone by then. But you'll have to take care of HH. I'll be in touch." There was another roar of static and the recording ended.

The three listeners exchanged a horrified look.

"HH," Constance whispered, hearing the pet name she had given the prince uttered by his kidnapper.

"We've a traitor among us," Tolan snarled angrily.

Constance caught her breath. "Not here. At the Foundation!" She turned just in time to see the Doctor sprinting from the room. "Doctor, where are you going?"

"To the TARDIS!" he called back. "Come on, hurry!"

Exchanging an amazed look with Tolan, Constance snatched up a stack of papers and dashed after him.

* * *

As the startling events at the Research Center unfolded, so did those at the Sorenson Mansion. On this very same morning, reality and illusion again fought for dominance and it seemed the prince was spiraling irreversibly back into madness.

Jason awoke with a start and sat up quickly, something he immediately regretted doing as dizziness washed over him. He leaned forward, cradling his head in his hands in an effort to remove the surreal images from his mind. _It was only a nightmare, _he told himself._ Or was it? Am I really awake? Or just dreaming that I'm awake?_ A hand was suddenly on his shoulder and he jumped, a cry of alarm escaping him.

"It's alright, it's only me," Turlough soothed gently.

Jason struggled to catch his breath, a hand going to his chest to keep his pounding heart from escaping. "Turlough? What…? How…?" Looking around, he suddenly had no idea where he was or how he had gotten there, the recollection of his captivity having overshadowed reality once again. "How did I get here?"

"You were rescued by the Argonauts. Don't you remember?"

"Very funny."

"I'm perfectly serious," Turlough laughed, receiving a dark look in reply. "Never mind. How do you feel this morning?"

"Isn't it obvious? I'm confused. No, that's not right. I'm more than confused. I'm…I feel… upside-down in my head." Jason pressed a hand to his cheek, as a rush of energy seemed to surge through him. "I feel so strange." Looking up, he asked, "Do I look flushed to you?"

Since the Alterran had been exceptionally pale since his rescue, Turlough found his last question amusing.

"How long have I been here?" the prince then asked.

"Oh…a while," came the evasive reply. Seeing Jason was less than convinced, Turlough held up his hands. "Don't look at me like that, Jason. You're perfectly safe. I promise." He pressed the buzzer that would bring breakfast and then reached for the bed control. His friend suddenly grabbed his hand, scanning him for what seemed the hundredth time.

"There, you see? It really is me."

"Yes, it is…" came the relieved reply.

Turlough raised the head of the bed and eased his skeptical friend back. "Just relax. I told you. You're perfectly safe here."

"Perfectly safe," Jason echoed softly. "I'd almost forgotten what that meant." He gave way to an involuntary shudder before asking, "Just where is _here_, anyway?"

"Aegis, of course."

"Aegis," the Alterran echoed, sinking back into the pillows and closing his eyes. "Aegis…"

Turlough almost jumped out of his skin when Jason suddenly sat bolt upright and exclaimed, "_Aegis!_ I was supposed to go there at the end of my—" Cutting himself off, he looked around the room, his eyes narrowing. "This is my room! The Royal Suite in the Sorenson Mansion."

The Alterran's sudden change in mood and accusing tone of voice threw Turlough completely. "Is it? I just asked for a room where you could see outside. Nobody told me— Why are you looking at me like that?" Realizing what he had just said, his eyes grew wide. "My Lord, Jason, can you actually see me clearly?"

Jason was not listening. "I knew it was too good to be true. I'm on to you now, and I'm not playing along."

"What?" Turlough gasped. He thought his friend was finished with hallucinations, yet here he was apparently in the middle of another one. To his added horror, Jason started pulling the monitor wires off, touching of another battle.

The breakfast cart arrived at that moment and the sound of raised voices alarmed the servant, who immediately called security. Amanda arrived on the heels of two security guards, she having responded to the monitor alarms. She entered the room to find Turlough physically restraining Prince Jason, who had wires and tubes in each hand. "Turlough, what the devil's going on in here?" she demanded.

Turlough had been oblivious to everything, having been too busy trying to keep Jason in bed. The physician's voice startled him and he looked up, only to be appalled when he saw the guards bearing down on him. It was all too obvious they intended to return Jason to his bindings. "No! It isn't what you think!" he cried. "He's just confused."

The guards ignored his protests. One of them took hold of Jason's arm, and that was all that was needed to galvanize him into action. Without warning he lashed out, sending the unsuspecting Turlough flying backwards across the room. The young man caught his foot on the carpeting and fell heavily to the floor, striking his head on the edge of a table as he went down. He felt the sharp pain on the back of his head but never felt himself hit the floor.

Apparently running on pure adrenaline, Jason effortlessly thrust the security men aside, sending them crashing against the wall. He scrambled from bed. Amanda was standing between him and the door and he froze when he saw her. For the first time in weeks, his vision was crystal clear and their eyes locked for several seconds before she wisely stepped aside, allowing him to continue with his flight. She was no match for his strength and did not give chase, going instead to the phone to raise the alarm before seeing to the three injured men in the room.

* * *

The TARDIS had scarcely materialized on the terrace of the Sorenson Mansion when the Doctor was out the door and making his way towards the house, the others hard pressed to keep up with him. "You're sure they'd've moved him to the Royal Suite?" he asked as he strode through the back entryway.

"Positive," Constance replied breathlessly. "That's where he always stays when he's here." Anticipating the next question, she said, "Second floor, main wing, all the way to the front."

"Thank you!" the Doctor called. He sprinted to the back stairway, racing to the second floor with Tolan at his heels. The alarm sounded as they reached the first landing and he stopped, throwing an uncertain glance in the Commander's direction.

"I hope that doesn't mean what I think it does," the officer muttered darkly.

At the other end of the main wing, Jason had also stopped, but for a completely different reason. Convinced he was in the midst of another illusion, he was uncertain which way to go. The long, bright hallway was the last thing he expected to find outside his room. The continuity of his surroundings should have changed the instant he stepped through the door. Looking around in bewilderment, he heard voices coming from behind him and chose to run in the opposite direction, getting as far as the end of the main hall before running into the most unexpected obstacle of all. The Doctor.


	14. Help Me

**Chapter Fourteen**

"**Help Me…"**

"No!" Jason threw up his hands and shrank away. "No, not again!"

The Time Lord motioned the Commander back before saying in a disapproving tone, "Jason, what on earth are you doing out of bed?" He stepped forward to catch hold of the wavering Alterran, which only served to upset him further.

"No! Stop, please, stop! I can't take anymore," the prince pleaded desperately, backing up until his back was pressed against the wall. He closed his eyes and tried in vain to concentrate. "You are not real," he said slowly and determinedly. "This…is…an illusion. It's not…real."

The Doctor held out his hands, waving back the others who had come in answer to Amanda's alarm. "No, I'm the real thing," he soothed gently. "Flesh and blood, see? No illusion."

"How do I know that?" Jason demanded, clutching at the table beside him to keep from falling. "These things…in my head…make me _see_ you as real. _Feel_ you as real."

"Jason, don't you even trust your own senses?"

"Yes…No! I mean… I don't know!" came the pitiful reply. The Alterran wavered a moment, struggling to retain his concentration against the buzzing inside his head. "Think!" he hissed between gritted teeth. "I must… I must…think!"

The Time Lord took another step forward only to jump back when Jason pulled an ornamental dagger from the display on the wall behind him. "Keep back, whoever—_whatever_—you are. I know how to use this."

The Doctor's mind was racing. In every extract he had reviewed, the confrontations had proceeded according to Jason's expectations, especially those involving the Time Lord himself. At all costs the Doctor would try to keep his Alterran friend with him. With this in mind the real Doctor did exactly the opposite. Holding up his hands in apparent surrender, he took a small step back, clearing the way for escape. "There's no need for violence, Jason," he said softly. "No one's going to stop you. You can leave if that's what you want."

This took the confused prince completely off guard and he stared at the inviting gap and staircase beyond. All he had to do was walk through it and he was free. Hesitantly, he took a faltering step forward, only to stop when the Doctor casually asked, "Where will you go?"

"Go…?"

The question was so unexpected it caused Jason to lose the only thread of concentration he had. He looked around, suddenly having no idea where he was or what he was doing. He turned away, only to add to his own distress by coming face to face with his own reflection in a decorative wall mirror. A small cry of despair escaped him as he looked into the pallid, haggard face, its dark sunken eyes staring vacantly back at him. The prince touched his snow-white hair, a wave of rage suddenly swelling up inside of him. The dagger flashed up, stabbing again and again into the offending reflection, shattering it into hundreds of fragments.

Feeling equally shattered, Jason slowly sank to the floor. Reality or illusion, he was trapped and he knew it. He leaned against the table, his head in his arms. "Help me…" he sobbed pitifully. "Somebody, please, help me."

The Doctor had to fight the urge to rush to his side and approached with the utmost caution, being saddened and angered when his friend cowered back. "We're trying, Jason," he soothed gently. "You must believe that. We're all your friends here. No one wants to hurt you."

"Legrand—"

"I'm the Doctor," the Time Lord said firmly. One other thing he had learned from the extracts was Legrand had failed to learn of Jason's scanning ability. With this in mind, he held out a hand in an obvious invitation for the Alterran to touch and thereby scan him. "Legrand couldn't recreate my time aura. I'm here, and I'm real. But only you have the power to prove it by touch."

Jason looked up, a searching look on his face. "How do you know that?"

A ghost of a smile past across the Doctor's face. "I know because you told me yourself a very, very long time ago."

The prince nodded. It was indeed a very, very long time ago. He looked at the outstretched hand hovering so tantalizingly close. After an agonizing pause, he reached for it. Unfortunately, the dagger was still in his hand and he ended up stabbing it straight through the Doctor's palm.

The Time Lord cried out in pain, grabbing his wrist and taking an automatic step back. Momentarily dazed, he did not resist when someone rushed over to aid him. Then, before he knew what was happening, the situation went out of control.

The cacophony of sounds only served to further confuse the prince. Seemingly forgotten, he struggled to his feet and headed for the stairs.

"Jason, no!" the horrified Doctor called, knowing his friend had neither the strength nor coordination to manage the stairway. The words were barely out of his mouth when a blaze of light surrounded the prince and he collapsed. The Doctor blinked and turned in time to see Commander Tolan holstering his weapon. Then he felt incredibly stupid, having completely forgotten the officer had been behind him the entire time.

"Next time get out of the way," Tolan admonished mildly before going to the stunned Prince Jason and effortlessly lifting him from the floor.

Brushing off further attempts to treat his hand, the Doctor followed the Commander into the Royal Suite where he discovered the reason Amanda and Turlough had been absent from the altercation in the hall. Dr. Spencer was applying an ice pack to the back of his companion's head.

The Doctor watched sadly as Jason was returned to bed and strapped down, feeling more like a traitor than a friend. He had promised to help only to betray Jason's trust and return him to the restraints he had fought so desperately to be free of. If only they could return him to reality and keep him there. "It would appear your misgivings about moving him were well founded after all," he said to Amanda.

To his surprise, she replied, "No, Turlough was right, my misgivings were groundless. This isn't right. He shouldn't've gone off like that. Not after this long." She crossed to the Alterran's bedside, the Doctor coming up beside her. She gave him a quick sideways glance and then ran her medical scanner over his roughly bandaged hand before he had the chance to withdraw it. "You'd better get that hand seen to, Doctor," she informed coolly. "You may have some tendon damage."

"Later." the Doctor said tersely. He was prevented from saying more when the physician let out an involuntary cry of alarm. "What the hell…?" she muttered, scanning her patient again. "Turlough, who's been in here since I saw him last night?"

"The usual people, I guess. I don't know. I fell asleep," came the bewildered reply.

"Why? What's wrong?" This was Tolan, who did not like the edge in Amanda's voice.

Not quite believing it herself, Dr. Spencer reported that there were substances in Jason's system that had not been there when she examined him the night before. The first was a powerful hallucinogen, which explained the scene in the hall. The second, and more astonishing, was radioactivity.

"There's radioactive material actually _inside_ his bloodstream," Amanda announced in horror.

Instead of being surprised, the Doctor merely nodded. "That would explain his sudden burst of energy."

"And mine," Tolan injected. "I thought it was an adrenaline response. I must've converted the energy when I carried him in here."

"I'm not following any of this," the Dr. Spencer said helplessly. "You converted it? How?"

"He's Alterran, the same as Jason," the Doctor replied. Receiving a puzzled look in response, he exchanged glances with Tolan before saying, "Eh, well…put simply, they have the ability to absorb radiation and convert it to energy the way humans absorb nutrients and energy from food."

"This much?" the overwhelmed physician asked, holding out the scanner to show him the incredibly high reading. Stunned, the Doctor immediately passed the device to Tolan.

A horrified look came to the face of the usually stoic Commander. "He'll burn himself out trying to convert that much in his condition," he gasped.

"Is there any way we can clear his system?" the Doctor asked concernedly.

"No. You can't," Tolan informed, "but I can." Placing his hands on Jason's chest, he closed his eyes and drew a deep breath. His body glowed brightly for several seconds before he pulled sharply away, a loud cry escaping him. "Wow!" he exclaimed, much to the amazement of those present. Backing away, he seemed uncertain what to do and started pacing like a caged lion.

"Don't you burn yourself out," the Doctor admonished.

To everyone's further amazement, Tolan squeaked, "Too late," and laughed uproariously.

"I think he may've absorbed more than the radioactivity," Turlough remarked aridly.

Amanda did a quick scan on the uncharacteristically animated Alterran officer, only to shake her head. "No. But he's got…" Scowling at the unit, she said, "I don't know. It looks like an adrenaline high the likes of which I've never seen."

"It's called a conversion rush," Tolan informed, the words tumbling out of him. "I've never had one before. It's quite exhilarating." It was also extremely dangerous and he continued to pace in an attempt to walk off his incredible burst of energy and compose himself. "I think if you scan HH now you'll find his system's clear of the radioactivity."

Considering the state the officer was in, Dr. Spencer had no doubt of this. She reexamined Jason and confirmed the absence of the radiation. She also found yet another surprise. "The implants have gone inactive. _All_ of them."

"All of them?" the Doctor repeated, throwing the Commander an inquiring look. "The stun blast?"

"I had it on the lowest setting," the Alterran replied. "He shouldn't even be unconscious."

"He's not unconscious," Amanda announced startlingly. "He's asleep."


	15. Deactivation

**Chapter Fifteen**

**Deactivation**

"_Asleep?"_ The Doctor turned sharply back to the peaceful occupant of the bed. "Are you sure?"

"It's the deepest he's slept since he got here, too. With any luck, those things will stay inert long enough—" Amanda never finished her sentence. The implants suddenly reactivated, setting off the monitors, and triggering a seizure.

"I thought he'd finished with those," Turlough gasped in shock.

The Doctor pulled his companion aside as pandemonium ensued. Dr. Spencer and her team worked for more than half an hour before Jason was stabilized. Turlough watched all this in trepidation, angry with himself for having allowed it to happen right under his nose. "And I said he was perfectly safe here," he moaned guiltily.

The Doctor gave him a knowing look as he had also told the prince that no one wanted to hurt him.

Having more or less returned to his serious self again, Tolan replied firmly, "Don't blame yourself, Turlough. You can't stay awake all the time. And neither can Fane. If anyone's to blame, it's me. I should've called in my own people at the beginning and been rid of Aegis' so called security."

"What's done is done," the Doctor snapped, having heard quite enough. "We can't change any of that now. The only thing that matters is Jason. We've got to get those things turned off before they kill him."

"Agreed," Amanda sighed as she dismissed her staff. "As soon as he's strong enough—"

"As soon as he's strong enough!" the Time Lord thundered. "Amanda, if this keeps up, he'll _never_ be strong enough! We've got to find a way of getting those things out of his head _now_."

"We don't have to," Constance announced from the door, the papers she had brought from the Research Center in her hand. "They can be deactivated. I found out how just last night. I've had the computer whizzes over at the Foundation double-checking everything just to be sure." Seeing she had everyone's attention, she went on, "There's a microcircuit in the head of the implants that controls them. Remove that and they go dead."

"Just like that?" Turlough asked unbelievingly.

"Well…" Constance hedged. "There is the small problem of keeping him under during the procedure. Drugs could simply aggravate the problem."

The Doctor blinked. "You call that a _small_ problem?"

Taking the paperwork, Amanda spread it out on a table and studied it for several minutes before saying, "What if we ran a low voltage charge along one of the probes? That should keep him out until they're all deactivated."

The Doctor had come over to scrutinize the papers and looked up in bewilderment. "How do you figure that?"

"Look at this." The physician pointed to the design draft of the extraction helmet. Each implant's respective prong had been labeled with its general function. One prong was labeled, _Knock Out_. "Now what do you suppose they used that for?" she asked aridly.

"Wouldn't that be pretty dangerous?" Turlough inquired. "Suppose it sets off one of the others?"

The Doctor was forced to agree, but went on to say that they would have to take the risk, for Jason's sake. Amanda disagreed, believing the prince's weakened physical condition should to be taken into account.

"Enough!" Constance had heard quite enough from the battling scientists. "There's no time to waste. We deactivate them now." She held up a hand as Dr. Spencer tried to protest. Throwing Tolan a quick glance, she added firmly, "I'll take full responsibility for the decision. _And_ Dr. Thorson will perform the operation."

"Thorson!" the Medical Officer gasped in distaste.

"He's the finest micro-surgeon in the quadrant. And—" Miss Sorenson threw a knowing look in Turlough's direction. "I understand he's trying to score some points with me."

* * *

As Jason was prepared for surgery, Amanda dragged the Doctor and his companion to an examining room in the Medical Center for treatment. The Time Lord was relieved to learn he did not have tendon damage, his wound only requiring stitches. Turlough had suffered a mild concussion in his altercation with the rampaging Alterran and was ordered to bed by Amanda, who quelled his protests by threatening to have him put in restraints should he refuse.

It was no surprise when Dr. Thorson jumped at the chance to take over the prince's case, but it was a bit of a shock when the operation took less than half the time expected. The moment the low voltage charge was applied, all the implants went inert. In the end, the decision to proceed had been the most difficult part of the process.

With Jason out of immediate danger, and in Thorson's capable hands, Constance ordered Amanda to take some time off. The Medical Officer had not taken any time for herself since the Argonauts were formed and desperately needed rest. Admittedly drained by the last few weeks, Amanda accepted the order with a minimum of protest, leaving Thorson happily in charge.

* * *

For security reasons Jason was moved to a different, larger isolation room, with admittance limited to medical personnel, the Doctor and Turlough being the only exceptions.

Jason did not fully return to his senses until late in the afternoon the day following the surgery. He awoke with a jolt, a cry of terror escaping him. He looked around wildly, not quite certain where he was or what was going on. His gaze fell on the Doctor, who was in a nearby chair reading a book. Jason stared open mouthed as the Time Lord rose to his feet and crossed over to him. He struggled to sit up, but was too weak to manage it, and fell back onto the bed.

"You might as well just relax," the Doctor said mildly. "You're not going anywhere for a while."

"Doctor?" Jason said once he found his voice. "Is it you? Is it _really_ you?"

Smiling broadly, the Time Lord held out a hand. "Check for yourself."

After an agonizing pause, Jason did, catching his breath as the powerful time aura surged through him like an electric current. He immediately let go and sagged, feeling drained by the unexpectedly forceful scan. "It's you, alright," he confirmed weakly.

The Doctor made no reply, smiling benignly as the prince lay studying him. The scan not only registered the Time Lord's injured hand, but also brought back the complete memory of the nightmarish flight through the mansion, the bandage on his friend's hand only serving to confirm he was recalling a true memory. "Where is she?" Jason asked finally.

"Who?"

"Xandora Legrand," came the unexpected reply.

The Doctor gave him a baffled look. "Xandora Legrand? Jason, what on earth are you talking about?"

"She was _there_, Doctor. In my room. I _saw_ her," the prince insisted. Seeing his friend's dubious expression, he closed his eyes and clenched his fists. "I wasn't hallucinating. I know I wasn't hallucinating."

The Doctor held up his hands. "Alright, calm down. I never said that you were." In fact, he was already wondering if Jason were identifying his assailant.

"Where am I?"

Pleased by this more normal question, the Doctor chose not to answer directly. "What's the last thing you remember?"

"The last thing?"

"Yes. The last clear memory you have."

Jason scowled, attempting to penetrate the confusion in his mind. Even with the implants deactivated the imbalance in his brain made accessing anything in his long-term memory difficult. "It's so hard to think," he muttered, a hand going to his temple. "My head is buzzing so much. I remember being kidnapped, if that's what you're asking. Legrand had me drugged a lot of the time. The rest—" He closed his eyes and shuddered. "The rest is a nightmare. A horrible, horrible nightmare. Please, don't ask me anymore, Doctor. I don't _want_ to remember."

The Doctor wanted to put a reassuring hand on his friend's shoulder but thought better of it, having seen the jolt the brief touch had caused. "It's alright, Jason," he said softly, "you're among friends now."

"No, it's not alright. The implants—"

"Have been deactivated," the Time Lord informed calmly.

"What?" Jason stared at him a moment, not quite believing what he had just heard. "But… that's impossible."

"Have I ever lied to you?"

Albeit a tired one, Jason gave him a playful smile. "I don't remember." He closed his eyes in obvious pain, a hand going to his head. "If they've been turned off, why is my head buzzing so much?"

"They've only _just_ been deactivated. Everything is bound to come back once your head is clearer, but you must give yourself _time_. You're entire bio-electric field is completely out of whack."

The prince was not sure he really wanted everything to come back, clearly or otherwise. "My family?" he inquired sheepishly.

"All very worried, naturally," the Time Lord informed. "And before you ask, I've spoken to Shadra myself. She's fine."

"She's not here, is she!" Jason gasped in an appalled tone that puzzled the Doctor.

"No."

The Alterran sighed heavily. "Thank goodness for that." Seeing his friend's baffled expression, he smiled weakly. "We, eh, revived the KaRoon-Tar ceremony when we were married. I usually control the mind-bond, but…I'm so out of control now."

Suddenly the Doctor understood. The ceremony Jason spoke of joined him telepathically with his bride. Were she present, Shadra would undoubtedly see, if not experience, her husband's turmoil.

"If you talk to her again," Jason said softly, "tell her…tell her…" Sighing, he said, "I have so much to tell her."

The Doctor grinned. "That's almost exactly what she said I should tell you," he said, going on to request that his friend rest, but Jason refused. He had too many questions that he wanted answered and was getting tired of being put off.


	16. Separate Projects

**Chapter Sixteen**

**Separate Projects**

The Doctor patiently answered his friend's questions, gleaning more information from him than he gave out. He stopped when it became obvious the prince was having difficulty just keeping his eyes open. "Alright, Jason, that's enough for now. You need to rest," the Time Lord said firmly. "We'll have plenty of time to talk later. You're just lucky Dr. Spencer is away. If she knew I'd indulged you this long, she'd have my head on a plate."

With a frown, Jason said, "Dr. Spencer? Evan Spencer? The computer linguist?"

Shaking his head, the Time Lord said, "His niece, Amanda. She's been your doctor while you've been here."

"His niece? Another one? He's got more relatives than I do."

"I didn't think that was possible."

The prince did not seem to hear him, his face clouding over. "That's odd. I can't place her. I know I must've had contact with her in all this time."

"Not necessarily. The entire staff's been ordered to wear gloves whenever they work on you," the Doctor informed mildly. Jason gave him a startled look and he flashed a broad smile. "Apparently, I'm not the only one who gives you a bit of a jolt."

Jason nodded understandingly. "Yes, the implants…" he sighed. "I think Curtis upped my sensitivity to ultra-hypersensitivity with these things. The sadist."

"Don't worry, you'll have ample opportunity to scan her when she gets back from her leave. Now, _please_, get some sleep."

The Alterran nodded and turned on his side, falling asleep almost immediately.

The Doctor had been deeply disturbed by what his friend had been able to remember, and was inwardly grateful for his Time Lord training, which allowed him to remain outwardly passive while being inwardly outraged. He went over to the desk and sat down, staring into space for several minutes, lost in thought. When at last he looked down, his attention was caught by Turlough's portfolio of drawings that were set off to one side. He paged through them, being more than a little impressed at how they literally illustrated the events of the past few weeks.

Turlough was admitted in to the room at that moment and gave a self-conscious smile when the Doctor remarked on his drawings. He hurriedly took the unfinished work from the Time Lord's hands and tucked it under the sketchpad. "That one's not right. It was supposed to be the console room, but I made the roundels too big."

Pulling out the drawing again, the Doctor said thoughtfully, "Odd, I thought it was the Zero Room. Color it pinkish-gray and you'll have a very good rendition." A sudden thought struck him and he caught his breath. "Of course, the Zero Room! Why didn't I think of it before?" _Nothing could be more perfect in aiding Jason in his recovery. Why didn't I think of it sooner?_ Then again, the fact that the original Zero Room had been accidentally jettisoned at the time of his regeneration might have had something to do with it. This was easily rectified, however. In fact, he probably should have reconfigured another one ages ago. There just didn't seem any need.

Looking blankly at the drawing, Turlough asked, "What in the world is a Zero Room?"

"It's not a bad idea, actually," came the unhelpful reply as the Time Lord strode out the door.

* * *

Commander Tolan arrived at the isolation room only a few minutes after the Doctor had left. He dismissed the guard at the door as he entered and then informed Turlough that he had intercepted one of Amanda's designated watchdogs along the way. They had discovered the boy's absence from the Medical Center and threats were being made about locking him up if he did not return on his own.

Heaving an exasperated sigh, Turlough reluctantly returned to bed, leaving the amused Commander to watch over the sleeping Prince Jason.

* * *

After a few hours of mind numbing boredom, Turlough could stand it no longer and sneaked out of his room yet again. He returned to the isolation room to find Jason still asleep and the Doctor still absent. Commander Tolan was working diligently at a computer console that had been concealed behind the wall beside the desk. Turlough was taken aback when he saw it, having never once suspected the wall covered anything more spectacular than electrical wiring.

"A fugitive again, I see," the officer observed aridly.

Turlough chose to ignore the remark. "That's from the disk Constance showed us, isn't it?" he asked, having recognized the distorted images on the screen.

Tolan nodded. "I'm trying to get the computer to give me a listing of the people HH was last in contact with. Names, dates and so on." Shaking his head, he said, "It's having a tough time wading through it all. I had to tie into the computer at Legrand's Research Center just to have enough memory space."

"What exactly are you trying to find?"

"A link—hopefully. We found a message Legrand received warning him we were coming." Tolan paused before confiding, "It apparently came from one of the Argonauts."

Turlough was appalled. Then he remembered the Doctor's concerns at the time of the rescue, which were the very reason he had accompanied Jason to the Foundation.

"The Doctor said HH saw, or thinks he saw, Xandora Legrand. I'm not sure what her connection might be, but I'm checking into it," the officer informed.

"That's a bit of a long shot, isn't it?"

"Maybe. The thing is, if HH really does know who the spy is then his life is in very grave danger."

"Then you're going to need some help," Turlough said as he pulled up a chair. "You can clear out some space if you separate people from everything else."

* * *

It was not until the Doctor actually started work on the TARDIS' architectural configuration system that he remembered why he had put off creating another Zero Room. The intricacies involved were time consuming and extremely tedious. He was in the midst of a very difficult calibration when the entire computer system suddenly shut down. Before the appalled Time Lord could react, the scanner activated itself, the shutters opening to reveal Cardinal Wythe of the High Council.

The Doctor was less than congenial. "I hope you realize you've just ruined nearly an hour's worth of work," he snapped impatiently.

Wythe glanced at the monitor near his elbow and grimaced. "Zero technology, Doctor? How very tedious. I never would've imagined your wanting to take the time to bother with such things."

Since the only reason he was bothering at all was because of Jason, the Doctor chose not to respond directly. "On the same token I might point out that I'm surprised you even bothered contacting me at all. Normally you just drop me into the middle of a mess you don't want to deal with and expect me to clean it up for you."

Like the Doctor, the Time Lord on the screen evaded the remark. "The High Council felt its President should be apprised of—"

"Oh, so that's it," the Doctor interrupted. "Whatever it is, the answer is no. You can take care of your petty squabbling yourselves. I don't—"

"You're acquainted with the Alterran Alliance, I trust?" came the unexpected inquiry.

There was something in the tone that put the Doctor on his guard. "Vaguely. I can't quote it chapter and verse like others I won't mention."

Wythe ignored the barbed comment. "There's a…well, a _situation_ brewing involving the Alterran Emperor."

The Doctor scowled. "The Emperor?"

"Yes, and it requires your immediate attention. He won't speak to _anyone_ but the Lord President—meaning, unfortunately, _you,_ Doctor."

"Oh, thank you very much," the Doctor said acidly. "And just what is this _situation?"_

"I'm not at liberty to say."

"What! And I'm supposed to contact Emperor Quinton without knowing the first thing—" The Doctor broke off when the control console shuddered beneath his hand. He looked down and saw, to his amazement, that a Zero Room had abruptly been added to the ship's architectural configuration.

"With my compliments. Good luck, Lord President. You're going to need it," Wythe said cryptically.

The scanner went blank, leaving the Doctor staring into space. Before he could decide what he should do next, the scanner activated itself a second time. To his relief, the face on the screen was that of Emperor Quinton.

"They don't waste any time, do they, your High Council?" he observed in an amused tone.

"Not when they're trying to unload a problem," the Doctor grunted in disgust.

"Actually, they're the ones who created the problem," the monarch informed. "It seems someone decided your involvement with the Argonauts was blatant interference—"

"Don't tell me, let me guess. They were going to file formal charges against me, right?"

"Naturally, since I was the one to involve you, I couldn't allow this to happen. I contacted the High Council—sighting an obscure passage in the Alliance—and beseeched them to assist in the plight of my favorite nephew."

The Doctor could not help but laugh. "I'll bet that got their attention. They were probably appalled to learn of Jason's rather significant status."

"To say the least. I was put off a couple of days—possibly so they could hide their blunder—and then, to my amazement, I am informed that the Lord President has taken it upon himself to look into the matter personally."

"All for the sake of intergalactic harmony, of course," the Doctor said loftily. "Is that why you demanded to speak to me personally? To add legitimacy to their obvious fabrication? That's not like you."

The Emperor smiled at the Time Lord's backhanded compliment. "It was a deception actually," he replied. "What I really wanted was to know how Jason was doing."


	17. Android

**Chapter Seventeen**

**Android**

Turlough and the Commander had barely begun work when the officer was called away, leaving the young man in charge of the extract. He was so engrossed in what he was doing that he jumped when someone suddenly came up beside him. "Doctor!" he gasped, a hand going to his chest. "I didn't hear you come in."

"I came to see how HH was doing," came the calm reply.

His companion gave him a quizzical look, wondering why he had suddenly chosen to use Constance's pet reference. "He woke up a bit ago," Turlough informed, throwing a glance in the direction of the peacefully sleeping Prince Jason. "He says he's getting stronger, but…I don't know. I think it's just wishful thinking."

The Doctor nodded absently, seeming more interested in the computer than Jason. "And what are you working on here?"

"Something of Tolan's. He's trying to get an index out of that disk Constance showed us."

"Are you sure the computer can do that?"

"Hopefully. We've got to separate people from everything else first. Then we're going to try and—" Turlough broke off when the Time Lord leaned on the desk to get a closer look at the screen. There was no bandage on his right hand. "Doctor, your hand. What hap—?" The next thing he knew, the hand had seized him by the throat and thrust him back against the wall. "Doctor!" he gasped out. "What're you—?" The rest of the inquiry was squeezed off as the iron grip tightened further.

"I'll ask the questions," the false Doctor snarled. "What is the translation key to the extraction disk?"

"What? I don't know," Turlough struggled to say, his fingers clawing at the hand at his throat. The grip continued to tighten until it cut off his air completely.

"Liar! You know what it is. Tell me, or I'll kill you."

Suddenly Jason's voice thundered out, "Why don't you ask me?"

To Turlough's relief, his attacker was pulled off and he collapsed onto the desk, gasping for breath. He looked up and was stunned to see the enraged Prince Jason actually holding the impostor off of the floor, his anger seeming to have given him supernatural strength.

"You people don't give up, do you?" the Alterran snarled. There was no time aura registering from the figure struggling in his grasp, and he wondered almost abstractly if he were hallucinating again. A quick scan proved he was not. It also proved something else. "Bloody hell! He's _real!"_ he gasped.

"No kidding," Turlough gasped out painfully, a hand at his bruised neck. To his horror, he watched as the prince slammed the impostor against the near wall and then smashed him onto the floor. The creature twitched in a final spasm before going completely still.

"Yo…you killed him," Turlough said in disbelief.

Jason merely grunted. "You can't kill an android." As proof, he tore open the automation's shirt, exposing the chest panel from which he yanked a glowing ball. "You can, however, take out its heart." The circuit seemed to blur in his hand and he sat back heavily. With the heat of the moment past, his adrenaline level had already started to normalize, which only served to leave him weaker than ever.

A bandaged hand suddenly reached into the open chest panel, withdrawing a smaller ball of circuits. "If you're going to take out my heart," the Doctor said mildly, "you'd best take out them both."

The prince looked up and blanched visibly, his face going almost as white as his hair. It seemed as though he were on the verge of fainting dead away. "Good Lord, Jason," the Doctor gasped, catching hold of his friend's shirt to keep him upright, "I didn't mean to frighten the life out of you. I only wanted to make sure it was completely deactivated."

"Deactivated…?" the Alterran repeated dully, looking into the open chest panel. "Yes, of course. I should've thought of that." He sagged a little more, his strength seeming to drain visibly from him.

"You should be in bed."

Jason shook his head. "No. No more sleep. I don't like what I dream."

"You're recovering from a traumatic experience, you Royal Idiot," the Time Lord admonished mildly. "You need peace and quiet, not overly dramatic entrances like mine." He took hold of his friend's hand, intending to help him from the floor. Instead he caused him to yelp in pain, his powerful time aura assaulting Jason's senses the instant their exposed skin touched.

Jason pulled sharply away, falling back to the floor where he lay breathless a moment. "I'm alright, I'm alright," he said quickly, closing his eyes and swallowing hard. A ghost of a smile crossed his face as he explained, "My nerve endings…are wide open. And that aura of yours_ hurts_."

"Still experiencing ultra-hypersensitivity?" the Time Lord asked, receiving a nod in reply. "I'll bear it in mind."

As with his fall from bed, Jason had pulled all the wires from himself, setting off every alarm in the Medical Center. Lieutenant Fane arrived with a member of Amanda's staff just as the Doctor was wrapping the trembling prince in a blanket.

Seeing what the Time Lord intended, Fane came over to him. "I'll do that, Doctor," he said and gently lifted Jason from the floor, returning him to bed.

"We've come full circle," the prince observed to the young officer. "Now you're the one looking after me."

"Uncle Jay, I'm just doing my job," Fane replied quietly.

With a small chuckle, Jason said, "You're starting to sound like Tolan."

As if on cue, Commander Tolan appeared in the doorway. He took in the scene in an appalled silence before turning an angry look in Fane's direction. The Doctor prevented him from issuing a scathing reprimand. "Don't blame the Lieutenant for this, Commander," the Time Lord said quickly, nodding toward the shattered android. "We have an even bigger problem on our hands. Now _we_ don't even know which of us is real."

"I can tell you who sent it, in case you can't guess," Jason injected shakily.

"If you could tell me where he sent it from, my Lord, that would be more helpful," the Commander replied soberly.

* * *

The Doctor and Tolan took the android to the Foundation's Robotics Department where it was dismantled. The numerous parts were passed on to the staff who began an intense study in the hopes of tracing the various parts and circuitry to their manufacturer and, possibly, Dr. Legrand himself.

Nearly a week passed with no major or even minor incidents, allowing Jason to regain some of his strength. Dr. Spencer returned from her leave to find the Doctor and Tolan pouring over a mountain of circuitry that she assumed had come from the Research Center, possibly from the archaic radio transmitter the Commander had been so interested in. Thinking the matter a trivial one, she gave it no further thought.

Amanda went to Dr. Thorson to get an update on Jason's condition and was given a glowing report on his excellent progress. The staff in the Medical Center thought her lack of visible reaction meant she was trying to keep her temper. They had no way have knowing the news was a harbinger of the thing she dreaded most, facing a lucid Prince Jason alone. He, and only he alone, knew she truly was Xandora Legrand, the daughter of his abductor.

Seeing no way of avoiding the impending confrontation, Amanda collected her medical kit and strode purposefully toward the isolation room. She found it odd when she saw there was no sentry at the door, having been informed of Tolan's new security measures. She got as far as the door and stopped, taking several deep breaths to steady her nerves. She and Jason had not been on the best of terms after their last encounter, and he was in for a shock when he finally saw her clearly. _Shock_? Amanda thought, shaking her head. _Knowing Jason, he'll probably start another fight._

Amanda knocked several times and called to Turlough without response. Thinking he might be asleep, she pulled out her keys to open the old-fashioned dead bolt lock on the door.

What happened next was a blur

The heavy door was suddenly pulled open, causing the Medical Officer to lose her balance. Someone then shoved her aside, sending her slamming into the wall. The back of her head banged against the plaster so hard she was sure she had made a dent. Momentarily stunned, Amanda barely managed to grab the doorframe to keep from falling.

Not quite sure what had just happened, Dr. Spencer looked around, seeing Turlough lying on his bed. The unmistakably sweet smell of chloroform in the air told her he was not sleeping. A horrifying thought struck her and she spun around, seeing Jason's monitors still beeping and flashing, the readings indicating he was alive and unharmed. Heaving a sigh of relief, she wondered if she had surprised the intruder before they had had the chance to harm him.

Finding her voice at last, Amanda dashed to the door, screaming for help at the top of her voice. The first person to respond was Lieutenant Fane, who had been on his way to check on the door guard. He was appalled when Amanda told him what had happened and immediately went to call Commander Tolan, coming across the missing sentry having an intimate conversation with a female member of the staff. The enraged Fane was upon him instantly, dragging him to the communication room with him.

With security alerted, Amanda went back into the room to find Turlough struggling back to his senses. She told him to relax, assuring him all was well before turning her attention to Prince Jason. "This explanation is going to be fun," she muttered darkly.


	18. More Surprises

**Chapter Eighteen**

**More Surprises**

Jason was oblivious to the fact that an intruder had entered his room, having been asleep the entire time. The sound of raised voices woke him and he tried to sit up, only to fall back, a hand going to his spinning head. "Turlough, what's going on?" he asked groggily. Closing his eyes, he shook his head, wondering why he felt so strange. He opened his eyes just as Amanda appeared at his bedside and his mouth dropped open in astonishment. Then he did something she did not expect. He flew into a rage. The first words out of his mouth were in a language she did not understand, but by his tone, she knew it was not complimentary.

"Calm down, calm down! I'm on your side!" Dr. Spencer admonished, taking hold of his wrists as he came up at her.

The Alterran continued to curse in several languages.

"Look, if you're going to swear at me, at least do it in a language I understand so I can respond in kind."

"How about you damn bitch?" Jason snarled.

"Not original, but it'll do," Amanda replied. She was still struggling to control him and had to get partially onto the bed to keep him down. "Oh, stop it, will you," she scolded. "You're going to pull all your monitors out again."

"What do you care!" the prince spat venomously.

"I'm your doctor, you Royal Pain. I'm supposed to care."

At this point, some of the staff arrived and made to help, only to be waved off. "No, never mind me, see to Turlough. It looks like somebody gave him a face full of chloroform."

Commander Tolan was the next to arrive and was taken aback by the sight of Dr. Spencer practically sitting on top of the struggling Crown Prince.

"Oh, Tolan, thank goodness!" Amanda cried delightedly. "Help me get him tied down before he hurts himself."

_"Himself?"_ the Commander observed dryly. It was all too obvious the prince was more intent on hurting the Medical Officer.

"Tolan!" Jason cried in a desperate voice. "Don't just stand there, help me! She's Xandora Legrand."

The Commander gave the woman he knew as Amanda an amazed and inquiring look. Across the room, the dazed Turlough gave an amused grunt. "The family's growing. Last time, I was Curtis Legrand," he said as he was helped from the room.

"So was the Doctor," Tolan reminded.

Attempting to take advantage of the momentary diversion, Jason gave a mighty heave and almost succeeded in sending Amanda tumbling to the floor. To his astonishment and horror, Tolan took him in an iron grip and held him down as the restraints were fastened over him.

"Tolan, what are you doing? Let me go!" Jason exclaimed. He continued to struggle but in his weakened condition he was no match for the powerful officer. "How could you betray me like this? After all I've done for you? She's going to kill me! And you're going to let her!"

Tolan tried to ignore the stinging protests, turning to the disheveled Dr. Spencer. "What happened?" he demanded.

"I don't know. I haven't had the chance to check him over." Pulling out her medical scanner, she held it over the squirming prince. "Well…" she said softly, her eyes fixed on the unit, "in case you hadn't guessed already, he's been drugged again."

"How much danger is he in?" Tolan wanted to know.

"None, really," Amanda said in a puzzled tone.

The Commander heaved a sigh of relief. "I was afraid he'd been poisoned this time."

Shaking her head, the Medical Officer replied, "No, nothing like that. He's going to be really out of it for a while." Pausing, she added, "Odd, though. You'd think they'd've used one of the drugs they were using when they were trying to drive him mad."

"What do you mean _trying?_" Jason interrupted sharply. "I'm pretty mad now! In fact, I'm… I'm…" Bursting into a fit of laughter, he exclaimed, "I'm fit to be tied!"

Tolan shifted uncomfortably on his feet before asking Dr. Spencer to tell him exactly what had happened.

Amanda apologized before telling him what little she knew, everything having happened so fast. The point Tolan found interesting was the absence of the Aegin guard on the door, which was the last straw.

"That does it. Red tape or no red tape, I'm taking over security as of now. Prince Jason is under the protection of the Alterran Imperial Military." With a rare smile, he added, "And right now, that means me."

"You do love a good battle, don't you?" Dr. Spencer grunted knowing of the ongoing fight between the Commander and the Aegin authorities since the Argonauts started operating.

Tolan's brown eyes flickered, his amusement flashing ever so briefly. Then he was all business once again. "Amanda, I'd feel a lot better if you stayed with HH until I get security sorted out. I've already sent for some of my people, but they won't arrive until tonight."

With a curt salute, the Medical Officer said, "Don't worry, Commander. I'll take good care of him."

The drugged Jason was appalled at the idea but his protests availed him nothing. He struggled wildly the moment the door was closed. "No, not again! I won't go through that again! Just kill me and get it over with."

"Jason, I'm not going to hurt you," Amanda said gently.

The prince was less than convinced. "Not going to hurt me! No, you're going to let someone else do it, aren't you?"

Amanda listened in an appalled silence as he began rambling about the horrors he had endured during his captivity. When he finally passed out, she crossed to the desk, intending to get some of her backlog of work done. Instead, she found Turlough's notes on the extract and touched the keyboard. The terminal screen came to life indicating that it had finished correlating all the data. Another touch of a key brought up a menu of several different categories, each ready to be indexed. Intrigued, the Medical Officer began reading some of the extracts, becoming more and more impressed as she read on.

* * *

After being given a clean bill of health, Turlough called the isolation room to inquire after Jason's condition. Amanda assured him the Alterran was in no danger, going on to scold him for having sweet-talked his way out of bed. The Doctor appeared at the door at that moment and his companion seized the opportunity to break off the conversation.

"How is he?" the Time Lord asked concernedly.

"High as a kite, apparently," Turlough said gloomily, "but otherwise unharmed."

"And how about you?"

"I'll be alright. Just a bit of a headache."

The Doctor's face darkened and he took a seat across from his sullen companion. "I'm sorry I got you into this, Turlough," he said at last. "You've taken the bad end of things twice now."

"Three times, if you count being thrown across the room."

The Doctor sighed. "If I hadn't insisted—"

"If you hadn't insisted, I would've done it anyway," his companion cut in sharply. "Jason's my friend, too, Doctor."

The Time Lord smiled briefly. "What happened?"

"That's what I'd like to know," came Commander Tolan's voice from the door.

Turlough thought a moment, only to shake his head, admitting that he could recall very little. He had been dozing at the time and only vaguely remembered hearing someone unlock the door.

"They had a key?" Tolan said in surprise.

The young man nodded. "I heard them jangling. That must be what woke me up. I rolled over to see who it was and the next thing I knew I had a towel of chloroform or something in my face. I don't know what happened after that."

"Male or female?" the Commander asked suddenly.

"What?"

"The intruder. Male or female?"

Turlough thought a moment, shaking his head. "I don't know."

"Did Amanda get a look at them?" asked the Doctor.

Tolan shook his head. "No. But she seems to think it was a woman. Other than that, she doesn't know any more than we do."

"If it was a woman, then she's as strong as an ox," Turlough observed darkly.

The Doctor grinned. "Lifting all those patients, I should imagine." His companion gave him a blank look and he sighed heavily. "Who else but a member of the medical staff would have access to the drugs _and_ a key to the isolation room?"

"Good question," Tolan stated firmly. "Unfortunately, I've just learned that idiot Thorson lost his keys this morning and forgot to tell anyone."

"Great," Turlough groaned.

"I'm checking a few leads, but so far…"

"Any luck on Xandora Legrand?" the Doctor asked.

"Not yet. HH told me Amanda was this Xandora just now."

"Amanda?" the Doctor repeated. "Good grief."

"Maybe it really was a woman," Turlough injected. "That woman. And Jason just got them confused because of the drugs."

Commander Tolan sat stone-faced as he considered this. "It's possible. So far we haven't been able to trace her any more recently than three years ago. It's as if she fell into a black hole." Rising to his feet, he excused himself and left.

Turlough turned to the Doctor, who had an odd, faraway look in his eyes. "So what do we do in the meantime?"

"We finish up on a more secure change of venue for Jason," the Doctor announced.


	19. Andy

**Chapter Nineteen**

**Andy**

Amanda spent most of the day reading the extraction disk, going from intrigued to impressed to astounded at Jason's encyclopedic brain. In fact, she was so engrossed she never even heard him stir and nearly jumped out of her skin when he suddenly spoke.

"You've got a hellova lotta nerve showing your face around here, Andy," he said contemptuously.

"And good morning to you, too, Sleeping Beauty," came the cheery reply. "How's your head? Still a little fuzzy?"

"Clear enough to know who _you_ are Xandora Legrand," Jason spat back, his eyes narrowing. "How the devil did_ you_, of all people, get into the Argonauts?"

Amanda blinked. "Wow, you really are thinking clearer, aren't you?"

"No thanks to you and your father."

"Hey, I had nothing to do with your kidnapping," the woman Jason called Andy said defensively, rising to her feet.

"And you had nothing to do with drugging me senseless, either, I suppose?" the prince snorted.

"No," came the icy reply.

"Do you really expect me to believe that after what you said—"

"After what I said!" Amanda cut in sharply. "Why you highbrow hypocrite! You can't hold that against me after what you did, _Lord Krystovan!_" she snapped, making certain to emphasize his birth title. It was the very fact that Jason had concealed his identity as Crown Prince when they first met that formed the basis of the rift that eventually formed between them. "I said some pretty nasty things, I'll admit. But I don't remember ever wishing anything like this on you."

"That's right. Phew, what a relief," Jason sighed sarcastically. "I feel so much safer now."

"Why you ungrateful, self-centered, egotistical excuse for a sentient life form!" Amanda ex claimed. "I'll have you know I saved your life!"

"Yeah, sure," the unimpressed prince grunted. "And you tied me down to make sure I didn't fall out of bed. Right?"

"I tied you down to keep you from pulling every wire in creation out of yourself again."

"Almost believable."

Amanda let out a small growl. "Look. I didn't come here to fight with you—_again_."

"That _would_ be a nice change, now, wouldn't it? What _did_ you come here for? To practice your knot tying?"

The woman across the room glared at him, taking a deep breath to keep from losing her temper completely. "No. I came to ask a favor," she said as she crossed to the bedside.

"What!" Jason was incredulous. "You're joking?"

"They let me into the Argonauts because they think my name is Amanda Spencer. I need you to—Don't laugh at me!"

"_You're_ Amanda Spencer!" the Alterran squeaked. "No wonder I couldn't put a face with the name. You go from Curtis Legrand's daughter to Evan Spencer's niece, and you don't think it's funny?"

"No, I don't."

"And they think _I'm_ crazy." Jason laughed again. "Forget it, Andy. I _saw_ you."

"Of course you did, you moron," Amanda snapped. "I've been your doctor for weeks now. _Here,_ not at the Research Center. I was just as surprised as everyone when we found out Curtis—" Cutting herself off, another angry growl rose in her throat. "Why am I trying to justify myself to you?"

"I don't know. You tell me. I'm a captive audience. No, no, I forgot. I'm your patient. Isn't that what you said?" the Alterran shot back, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

The Medical Officer glared down at him. "Damn you, Jason Krystovan. You can be such a bastard sometimes. How dare you accuse me of having anything to do with this. Do you honestly believe I'm capable of something this cold-blooded?"

All of his instincts told him no, but even he was beginning to distrust himself. Drawing a deep breath, Jason said in a normal tone, "Okay, okay. But just look at it from _my_ point of view. What _am_ I supposed to think when I wake up like this?" He looked pointedly at the restraints still holding him firmly into place.

Amanda was forced to admit that he had a valid point and started removing the straps, much to his relief. "It's ironic," she said mildly, "I couldn't get you to stop separating my work from Curtis's before. And now, I can't get you to keep us apart. After four years, we're still fighting about the same thing. Only now we're on opposite sides."

This appallingly accurate assessment left Jason speechless and wishing he could think clearly. It was becoming increasingly difficult to deal with the complicated situation unraveling before him.

Apparently sensing the Alterran's sudden confusion, Amanda folded her arms and leaned back against the bed, her gaze falling on the computer, and reminding her of the one question she had been dying to ask. "Jason, what was Curtis after from you, anyway?" Looking back at him, she added quickly, "And before you say revenge, I think you should know he was being paid."

"Paid? By whom?"

"Heaven only knows."

Jason's face darkened. He had been trying not to think of the events following his abduction, and now that he was actually trying, he found it too difficult to retrieve anything pertinent in his jumbled memories. Shaking his head, he sighed helplessly. "I don't know. I'm not sure I ever did. I don't remember a lot of what happened very clearly."

"Really?"

The prince bristled, thinking she was being sarcastic. "Yes, _really_. These implants you designed did a good job of making sure I didn't remember anything."

"They almost killed you, too, if you really want to get melodramatic about it," Amanda snorted. "And _I_ didn't design those, either. Curtis did." Crossing to the desk, she turned the computer terminal around, saying in a more normal tone, "That's not what I meant, anyway. Take a look at this."

Jason tried to sit up but found it too difficult, and had to raise the head of the bed in order to see across the room. His mouth dropped open when he saw his own memories flashing across the screen. "Where did you get that?" he gasped.

"Compliments of Curtis," Amanda replied matter of factly, going on to tell him of the dozens of other disks that had been found at the Research Center, the bulk of which were undecipherable. At least, undecipherable by Legrand's staff. Apparently the Doctor and Constance had had little trouble.

Seeing the type of information pouring forth, Jason, for the first time in his life, marveled at the shear volume of detailed information he collected in a single three second scan. If this was only from one disk, what was on the others?

"I don't know how you do it," the Amanda remarked admiringly. "I can't remember last week without checking my journal, and you remember everything you come in contact with without batting—" Cutting her off, she blinked, looking at the puzzled Alterran and then back at the computer screen. "My Lord, that's it, isn't it?"

"What? You've lost me."

"You remember everything you come in contact with. Everything you _touch_. No wonder you couldn't stand being touched by everyone. You must pick up information the way my scanner does. We were overloading your system."

Jason felt what little blood he had drain from his face. He was not sure if she were friend or foe, but here she was, Xandora Legrand, the only person who had ever managed to divine the secret of his scanning ability. The last thing in the universe he wanted her to know about. "Let me ask you a question," he said in an attempt the change the subject. "If you didn't know Curtis was behind my disappearance, _why_ join the Argonauts? Why should you care if I'm found or not?"

With a laugh of irony, the woman across the room replied, "Constance asked me."

"Constance?" Jason repeated. "She has no idea who you really are?"

"Of course not. No one does. Except for you, that is. Do you really think Tolan would've locked me in here if he'd known?"

The mental image of the Commander discovering this made the prince chuckle. "Are you kidding? He'll have a coronary when he finds out."

Hesitantly, Amanda, now Andy asked, "Are you going to tell him?"

After an agonizing pause, Jason replied, "Can you give me a reason why I shouldn't?"


	20. Friends?

**Chapter Twenty**

**Friends?**

Amanda gave a self-conscious smile. "I suppose I do owe you an explanation," she said resignedly. She told Jason that he wasn't the only one with whom she had had a major falling out. She had also been battling with her father, who had completely taken over the Lazarus Project. He had taken it upon himself to change all of her designs, making them even more unreliable, and dangerous in the extreme. When Curtis announced he was going to continue testing, despite the overwhelming evidence of the project's unfeasibility, she came to realize that Jason had been right all along. Curtis was just as unstable and dangerous as the project itself.

"I got scared," Amanda admitted. "Of the project—and of him. I sent a resignation letter and disappeared. I even changed my name so he wouldn't be able to find me."

"Why?" the Alterran snorted sarcastically. "He may be a homicidal psychopath, but at least he's family."

"That's not funny, Jason!" Dr Spencer snapped angrily, the fear in her voice surprising him. "He cut a man's vocal cords because he refused to physically hurt you. What do you think he'll do to me if he finds out I saved your life?"

The stunned prince mulled this over a few minutes. "You changed your name and came here. Why _here,_ of all places?"

The woman beside him was nonplussed. "Why not?"

"Oh, come on, Andy! I was the one who pulled your funding, remember? And I seem to recall your never wanting to see my lying two-faces again."

Clearing her throat, she admitted, "This isn't exactly how I'd envisioned our next meeting. Anyway, I've been here almost three years, and we've never once bumped into each other."

"And if we did, you'd gently remind me of my own duplicity, right?" Receiving a hesitant nod, Jason grunted. "Blackmail. That's different."

"Actually, I figured Curtis would never dream of looking for me here. And, well…even if you lost your temper, you'd still give me a chance to explain afterward."

Jason fell silent, uncertain as to what to think. Should he believe her? Could he even trust himself to make a decision of this magnitude?

The faraway look in the Alterran's eyes caused Amanda to hope he was reconsidering his original assessment of her, which, in fact, he was. Mentally crossing her fingers, she asked, "Well? Friends? Or Enemies? Which are we?"

"I haven't decided yet," Jason responded softly, his eyes still focused in the distance. "Neutral, I guess."

Amanda gave a small smile. "Fair enough. I can't expect you to—" She broke off when she saw him wince. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing."

"Don't give me that," the physician snapped. She pulled out her scanner and held it over him. Jason immediately took her by the wrist and pushed her hand away. "Andy, I'm fine," he said insistently, only to wince again. His grip on her tightened as groan of pain escaped him.

"Yeah, you look it," Dr. Spencer said caustically, switching the scanner to her free hand. "Look, you mineralogist's nightmare, whatever differences we may have, I'm still your doctor, and I'm reading—" She caught her breath, looking up in alarm. The scanner indicated the Alterran to be in incredible pain.

"It comes and goes," the prince said in a low, strained voice.

"Thorson said you were having some trouble, but really! Inflammation of the joints, muscular cramping, spasms…" Shaking her head, she said, "It looks like your nerve endings are going haywire. Is your head still buzzing?" When her patient didn't answer, the Medical Officer glared down at him in annoyance, repeating the question.

Rolling his eyes, Jason sighed heavily, accepting defeat. "Yes, my head is still buzzing. On and off." With a small smile, he added, "At least I'm not seeing things anymore."

Suddenly the Medical Officer thought she was the one seeing things. The room was filled with a strange wheezing and groaning sound, and a blue shape started to appear out of thin air.

Jason's reaction to this apparent hallucination was completely different. He closed his eyes and moaned, "Why can't he just come through the door?"

The TARDIS had no sooner materialized than the Doctor appeared at the door, looking exceptionally pleased with himself for his pinpoint landing.

"Can't you just come through the door like a normal person?" Jason repeated the Doctor stepped from the TARDIS doorway.

"And start the rumor I was a normal person?" the Time Lord grinned. He glanced over at the desk, doing a double take when he saw the wealth of information still scrolling across the screen. He turned an inquiring gaze in the prince's direction, but it was Amanda who responded.

"Isn't it amazing?" she said in an envious tone. "To be able to remember so much in such exacting detail."

"Fat lot of good it does me now," the Alterran snorted. "Nobody believes a word I say anymore." He glared pointedly at Dr. Spencer, adding, "Between the drugs and the implants, it's a wonder I remember my own name, let alone _yours_."

"Don't start," she snapped defensively. "You're neutral, remember?"

"I remember," Jason muttered in mock repentance. The rising pain in his body caused him to grab hold of the side of the bed, a groan of anguish escaping him.

"That does it. You're getting something for that," Dr. Spencer stated flatly, pulling open her medical kit.

"You're not giving me—" Jason caught his breath. "—anything." His attempt at forcefulness did nothing but succeed in hurting him more.

"What's been going on in here?" the perplexed Time Lord asked. The last thing he expected to find was this openly adversarial atmosphere.

"Just what did that Amazon give him, anyway?" This was Turlough, who had followed the Doctor from the TARDIS.

Amanda gave a wry smile, throwing the glowering Alterran a sideways glance. "Something akin to an old fashioned truth drug, actually."

"What!" Jason gasped. "You didn't tell me that."

"You didn't ask."

"Why on earth would they give me…?" The prince's voice trailed off and he shot a quick glance in the direction of the computer.

"You were right, Jason," Turlough observed. "They _don't_ give up, do they?"

"I thought I told you to get some rest," Amanda scolded.

The Doctor quickly came to his companion's defense. "That was my doing. I needed some assistance getting Jason's newest accommodations prepared."

"I hope they've got better security than this place," Prince Jason said aridly. "They'll let anybody in here."

The Doctor was puzzled by his friend's open hostility and hoped it was due to his obvious distress. Pain can do strange things to one's personality, and he decided it best to overlook the Alterran's uncharacteristic outbursts.

With a smile, the Time Lord pulled the TARDIS key from his pocket. "Where you're going has the highest security there is," he announced. "You see, I have the only key."

Jason stared at his friend in disbelief. "You're going to lock me in the TARDIS?"

The Doctor's smile broadened. He stepped aside, allowing Turlough to bring out a wheelchair. "In a manner of speaking. We fixed up the Zero Room for you. You'll be able to rest and, hopefully, get rid of that irritating buzzing in your head."

"The Zero Room…" Jason repeated wistfully. "What ever made you think of that?"

Giving his companion a knowing look, the Doctor shrugged. "You might say it just…came to me. Actually, I'm a little annoyed with myself for not having thought of it sooner."

Amanda was reluctant to release Jason from isolation but kept her objections to herself lest she trigger another outburst. She disconnected him from the monitors, doing her best to avoid his piercing gaze. Dropping the side of the bed, she then helped him to sit up, which only added to his agony. Jason let out a sharp cry, catching hold of her arm. He closed his eyes and did not resist when she drew him close and held him in her arms until the wave subsided. When he realized what had just happened, he flushed slightly with embarrassment.

"Your Highness, please, let me give you something for the pain," the Medical Officer begged.

Unable to stand it any longer, the prince agreed, grabbing the end of the bed for support. "I thought it would fade like before," he said in a strained voice, "but I think this is the worst it's ever been."

"Your thrashing around last night didn't help matters much. Those torn ligaments of yours aren't completely healed yet."

The Doctor was relieved when physician and patient started talking to one another in a more normal tone, confirming his earlier observation that the Alterran was snapping out of discomfort rather than animosity.

Keeping her back to the others, Dr. Spencer purposely measured out the drug before the former Healer's watchful eyes. She pushed up his sleeve to administer the injection, hearing a small gasp escape him when he saw the marks on his arms for the first time. He pushed up his other sleeve, seeing a mirror image; scars from the gashes inflicted by the restraints of the extraction couch, track marks from the numerous injections and circular scars where the sensor patches had fused themselves to his skin. In short, he was a mass of partially healed injuries.

"I didn't do all _that_ last night," he said at last, looking up to see a pained expression on Amanda's face. Returning his gaze to his arms, Jason suddenly felt on the verge of tears. Shaking his head, he whispered, "Oh, Andy, what did he do to me?"


	21. Zero Room

**Chapter Twenty-One**

**Zero Room**

Amanda was stunned when she saw the tears welling up in Jason's eyes. "Don't let him break you, Jason," she whispered, squeezing his hand. "Just be glad you don't remember." She administered the drug and pulled down his sleeves. In a normal voice she said, "Now, just try to relax. It'll take a few minutes for that to work."

The prince nodded weakly, wiping the tears from his face. He knew the others would think they was due to the pain and chose to leave it at that.

Once the drug had taken affect the Doctor moved Jason into the waiting wheelchair and took him into the TARDIS. Amanda's reaction to the impossibly large interior was identical to the countless others to pass through the double doors for the first time. Once she recovered from the shock, she voiced her doubts on how one room could be more beneficial than another.

Turlough groaned inwardly as the Time Lord launched into an explanation of Zero technology and how it functioned to block out foreign signals. He had theorized the implants were somehow picking up these signals and because Jason was in such a weakened state and unable to concentrate, he was could not shield his mind to block the perpetual buzzing the signals caused.

Arriving at their destination at last, Jason turned to Amanda and said mischievously, "Now aren't you sorry you asked?"

The Doctor gave him a disapproving look, but was inwardly pleased his former companion's sense of humor seemed to be returning as his pain subsided. "This is a new Zero Room, Jason," he informed as he positioned the Alterran in the center of the room. "What do you think?"

"I think…I'm going to like it here," the prince sighed happily. He paused as if listening and then leaned back. "You were right, Doctor. The buzzing's stopped."

"And the pain?"

"Tolerable. The drug's still kicking in."

Dr. Spencer looked around the bare room in amazement and annoyance. Granted there was a tangible tranquility about the place, but it was seriously lacking in furniture. "Doctor, I thought you said HH would be able to recuperate in here."

"Indeed."

"He can't sit up the whole time," she objected.

Jason could not help himself and chuckled. "Don't worry, that's not a problem in the Zero Room." He closed his eyes and stretched out his legs, letting his head fall back. Drawing a deep breath, he relaxed, a few seconds later he slowly rose into the air. "I'll bet you didn't think I could do it, did you, Doctor?" he asked playfully.

The Time Lord did not reply, being too amused by the amazed expressions on the faces of his companion and Dr. Spencer, both of whom he motioned to the door.

"You're not leaving him alone, are you?" the appalled Amanda objected as she was ushered from the room.

"He's perfectly safe in the Zero Room," the Doctor assured as he closed the door. "No one can get to him now."

"But to leave him unattended—"

"Amanda, let him sleep," the Doctor said firmly. "In fact, you should get some sleep your self." He told his companion to show the Medical Officer to one of the guest rooms before dis appearing down one of the seeming endless corridors.

Before Amanda could protest further, Turlough took her by the arm. "Don't even bother," he sighed. "I told you, it's no use arguing when he's like that."

"Turlough, I can't abandon HH in some alien environment and hope he'll be alright."

"Do you really think the Doctor would leave him alone if he thought there were even the slight est possibility of something going wrong?" Turlough countered sharply. "I was sent along as a bodyguard, for pity sake."

Amanda sighed heavily, accepting defeat. Or so she wanted it to appear. She allowed her self to be led to one of the guest rooms where she waited until she was certain Turlough had gone. Peeking out the door, she then crept out and made her way back to the Zero Room.

* * *

In the Sorenson Mansion, Constance went to her study to find Commander Tolan pouring over the findings his security team had brought with them. There were papers and laser disks heaped in a pile on one side of the desk, while the other side was a contrast in total organization; neat little piles in equally neat little rows.

"Tolan, what on earth are you doing to my study?" Constance asked as she entered.

Ignoring the question, he asked, "You run security checks on everyone who works at the Foun dation, don't you?"

Miss Sorenson was completely thrown by this unexpected inquiry. "What?"

"Background checks, security clearances, that sort of thing?"

"Why on earth do you want—?" Constance broke off. "It's that transmission again, isn't it?" Not waiting for a reply, she reached across and accessed the Foundation's security files containing the background checks of all personnel, past and present.

With a wry smile, the Commander asked, "Are you in there?"

"No," came the icy reply. "And neither is Turlough. Does that make _him_ a suspect, too?" Pull ing up a chair, she asked in a normal tone, "Who, or what, are you looking for, anyway?"

Tolan tapped a folder bulging with papers. On top was a handwritten list of names. "There are a few people here whose background info doesn't jibe with what they've told us. I want to know about them first."

Constance glanced at the list of names and looked up. "Tolan, not all of these people were Argonauts."

"I know." Turning back to the computer, he asked, "Do you have to access by file number, or can I do it alphabetically?"

Miss Sorenson stared at him in blank astonishment. "Tolan Diondra, I can not believe you sometimes. I thought I was the cold-blooded one, but you take the cake. You were looking for a spy in the group, not my staff."

"Connie, my obligation to HH goes way beyond the Argonauts. You, of all people, should know that."

"Yes. But it doesn't mean I have to like it."

Tolan's eyes flashed and he gave her a quick kiss on the cheek. "Not everyone involved with the Argonauts were volunteers. Especially at the beginning. You brought in some of the staff to fill in the gaps, remember?"

"Ye-es," came the defeated sigh.

"Now, about the files…" The officer gave her his best puppy dog look. "Please?"

Constance gave him an amused sideways glance and rolled her eyes.

"Pretty please," Tolan said in a playful tone that would have shocked nearly everyone who knew him.

"Sweet talker," she quipped, receiving a broad smile in return. "Would it be foolish of me to ask why you haven't looked to see if HH has any info on these people in his memory extract?"

"No, actually, it wouldn't," the Commander replied. "Once Turlough got the information separated, we found out there was no index, if that's the right word. A person or event is set up as a kind of key in the memory block with everything pertaining to it is in a subroutine. The amount of information is so vast it'll take days just to sort it out. And finding a single individual could take hours without the right header."

"I found us."

"That's because we were all under a subroutine with the Doctor as the key. And he was at the beginning of the disk. The person we're looking for won't be there, otherwise the Doctor would know them." Glancing over at the bulging file, Tolan admitted, "I'd ask HH if he were stronger, but right now, I'd rather he didn't know what I was up to."

Miss Sorenson nodded, returning her attention to the computer. "I think your best bet would be to access the files alphabetically."


	22. Rest & Recovery

**Chapter Twenty-Two**

**Rest & Recovery**

Opening the door as quietly as possible, Amanda crept back into the Zero Room. The Alterran prince was still floating about two metres in the air and appeared to be asleep. Not wanting to wake him, she moved the wheelchair closer to the door and sat down, placing her medical kit on the floor beside her.

"I thought you were supposed to be resting," came Jason's calm voice through the still air around her.

Amanda let out an involuntary cry. She had been watching the floating figure closely, and he had not moved. His eyes were closed and he still looked asleep, yet he obviously was aware of her presence in the room. "I don't care what the Doctor says," she said as she got to her feet. "I'm not leaving you alone. You're not strong enough. I did a little research on acceptable energy levels while I was on leave."

The hovering Alterran slowly sank to the floor, a small sigh escaping him as he landed. He opened his eyes and looked up at the woman now standing over him. "I'm not strong enough because nobody will let me near a decent convertible energy source."

"What do you mean decent?"

"He means radioactive," the Doctor said from the door, startling Amanda a second time. Crossing to the supine form, he said, "That _is_ what you mean, isn't it?"

Jason met the Time Lord's accusing gaze steadily. "Nothing I've been near lately is strong enough—"

"And neither are you! I wasn't going to tell you this until later, Jason, but you've already been injected with some highly radioactive material—"

"I can't have," the prince objected. "My reserves are completely depleted. I'd have a residual effect of some kind—"

"Jason, in your condition the dosage would've been lethal. If it hadn't been for Tolan, you'd've burned yourself out trying to convert it. He gave himself what he called a…a… conversion rush clearing your system of the stuff."

It had seemed the two were taking turns interrupting each other and Amanda was almost amazed when the Doctor was able to complete what he was saying. The shocked Jason threw a questioning look in her direction and asked, "When did this happen?"

"When you ran amok in the mansion," she replied.

The Alterran considered this a moment. "That was almost two weeks ago. I've—"

"Undergone surgery and been drugged again since it happened," the Doctor pointed out, interrupting his friend yet again. "I know what you want, Jason, and the answer is no. I'm not putting you in an energy bed. You're bioelectric field is too unstable and you're brain is still out of whack from the implants. You'd never be able to direct the energy properly. And, let's face it, you're much too weak physically."

"I am not!"

The Doctor heaved an exasperated sigh. "Oh, no? Just look at yourself. You can't even get up from the floor."

"That's because I'm comfortable," the prince snorted.

"If I might intercede…" Turlough interrupted from the door.

Startled, the Doctor spun around glaring at the boy in anger and annoyance. "Does no one do as they're told anymore?" he moaned.

His companion chose not to reply directly and pulled a small gray cylinder from his pocket, holding it out. "Perhaps this might help."

"What is it?"

"A gram of pure plutonium."

The Doctor was horrified. "What! Turlough, are you out of your mind?"

"It's completely shielded," his companion said quickly. "I'm not stupid enough to carry it around in the open." He got down beside the prince, placing the tube in his hand.

Amazed, Jason turned the cylinder over in his hands. "Turlough, where did you get this?" he gasped.

"Why?" Turlough asked, suddenly filled with misgivings. "It's still sealed, isn't it?"

The Alterran assured him that it was, going on to say that it would have been impossible for him to open it even if he tried. The seemingly innocuous tube was actually an incredibly powerful energy source engineered to release small amounts of radiation without actually exposing the isotope. The casing was designed to respond to the signals unique to his silicon-based biology.

"I saw the prototype…oh, it must be months ago now," the prince informed thoughtfully. "I never dreamed they'd be ready for production already." Squeezing the tube, he felt the warm rush of energy pouring into his depleted reserves.

The Doctor did not like the way the Alterran's body seemed to glow momentarily. "Jason…" he said warningly.

"It's alright, Doctor, it's supposed to do that. It's specifically designed for conditions like mine. Severe energy depletion. It directs the energy automatically. I don't have to do anything." Closing his eyes, Jason added with a sigh, "except sleep. I'll be alright now. I'll _finally_ be alright." With that, he slowly rose back into the air.

The annoyed Time Lord pulled his companion aside. "We'll talk about this later," he said in an angry hiss.

"I got it from the Emperor!" Turlough blurted out in a low voice—the admission surprising even him, as he had no conscious memory of actually receiving the cylinder.

"The Emperor. Of course. That's why he called you aside."

Dr. Spencer drew closer, whispering, "Will he _really_ be alright now?"

Throwing a worried look across the room the Doctor replied, "Physically, yes. I'm not sure about the rest of him."

After a few hours passed with no signs of change, Turlough managed to persuade the exhausted Dr. Spencer to get some sleep. She returned to the Zero Room nearly ten hours later finding the Alterran's position unchanged. Only then did she finally understand why the Doctor had been unconcerned about leaving him on his own.

With nothing else to do, Amanda retrieved the schematic of the implant probes and spread them out on the floor of the Zero Room, hoping she could find a way of removing them without causing irreparable brain damage. She was unaware of the fact that Jason could transmute, and had no way of knowing he could remove them himself once he was fully recovered.

The Doctor suddenly popped his head in the door to check on Jason's progress, or lack thereof. "I'll be in the lab, if you need me," he said in a low voice. "Turlough's still about some-where. And if you need Tolan, he's doing security checks at the mansion."

"Still? Doesn't he ever quit?"

The Time Lord shook his head. "He's gotten it into his head that Jason really did see this Xandora Legrand in his room. Apparently she was part of the original Lazarus Project and none too pleased when he pulled the funding."

Amanda's heart was already in her mouth and she heard herself saying, "Really?"

"Yes. And Tolan's found out she's some kind of robotics expert, which might explain where that android came from."

"Android? What android?"

The Doctor scowled down at her a moment before realizing she had been away when the incident occurred. He told her what had happened and left, having no sooner shut the door than Amanda cursed under her breath, crumpling a wad of paper and throwing it into a corner.

"It _was_ one of your designs, Andy," Jason informed softly. "At least, internally."

Looking up, Amanda stopped herself from issuing a biting reply when she realized he was not pointing a finger but simply stating a fact. "I purposely stayed away from that field so Curtis couldn't find me—and now this. What am I supposed to do now?"

After a long pause, Jason said calmly, "You have to leave."


	23. I Still Need Your Help

**Chapter Twenty-Three**

"**I Still Need Your Help."**

"What!" Amanda was appalled. "Jason, I had nothing to do with your kidnapping. I swear it."

To her astonishment, the prince replied, "I believe you. I just don't think Tolan will. He's a good man. He's also a good security officer." Pausing, he corrected himself, "Actually, he's an _excellent_ security officer. If he's running background checks, how long do you think it'll take before he finds out there was no Amanda Spencer until about three years ago?"

"Not long," came the meek reply. Shaking her head, Amanda started to laugh. Then she started to cry.

The floating figure slowly sank to the floor, only this time he did not remain there. His energy reserves completely restored, Jason got to his feet, crossing to the distraught physician and sitting down beside her. "I didn't mean it like that," he said gently. "I haven't been asleep all this time, you know. I've been thinking. Clearing my mind, as the Doctor would say. And if I'd had a clear head to begin with I never would've said the things I did. You could've killed me a dozen times over these last few weeks, and no one would've been the wiser."

"And you don't think I'm the one who tried to burn you out with that radioac—"

"No."

Amanda stared at him in blank astonishment, not sure what to think. "Jason, where am I supposed to go?" she asked finally. "I've no where to run."

"Is that why you stuck around even after you found out Curtis was the one behind this?"

Giving the Alterran a meaningful look, Amanda asked, "Do you _really_ need to ask why I stayed?" She smiled in spite of herself when his large blue eyes widened in mock surprise and he said in playful alarm, "My dear woman, I'm a happily married man!" He was then truly amazed when she informed calmly, "I know. I've been keeping your wife posted on your progress since day one."

"I hope you didn't tell her about us or I'm really in trouble."

This remark brought another watery smile to Dr. Spencer's face. Things were already complicated enough without getting Jason's bride of two years involved. "Don't worry, I didn't."

Following her gaze to the papers on the floor, Jason nodded knowingly. No one knew the dangers the implants could pose better than the woman beside him. "You risked an awful lot on my account, Andy," he observed soberly. "And I'm not sure I deserved it. I really have been a bastard to you, and I don't mean since I woke up, either."

"I thought I was in love with you back then," Amanda suddenly heard herself saying.

"No, you _were_ in love with me back then," came the startling reply. "That's what made it so painful. I didn't realize it until it was too late. I just thought you were, well…"

"Spying for Curtis," she completed, adding, "Sleeping with the enemy, as it were?"

Jason gave her a guilty look. "I should've told you about myself sooner. And now I'm sorry I didn't. I really misjudged you."

Amanda let out a small sob upon hearing his, causing the Alterran to heave an exasperated sigh. "Oh, do stop crying, you silly female," he moaned. "I said you had to leave. I didn't say you had to run. I still need your help."

"How can I possibly help you now?"

With a smile of irony, Jason said, "You're going to have to bear with me on this, Andy, because…it's going to sound crazy."

When Jason finished his explanation, Amanda had to disagree with him. His plan wasn't crazy, it was downright dangerous. She could not, however, fight his logic, as he seemed to have worked out every detail. He had even come up with a safe place for her to hide until her "identity crisis" could be resolved.

Grateful to be given the chance she thought she had lost, Amanda went to find Turlough. Jason, in the meantime, went to change his clothes before going to the console room to wait for his friends. When at last they arrived, they could hear him talking to someone through the partially open door, but could hear no reply. Was he talking to himself?

"You're _sure_ he's alright?" Turlough asked before entering the control room. The prince was standing beside the control console and turned as his friends came in. For the first time in weeks, Turlough saw the Alterran in full health and the sight made him stop short. Jason's face was no longer drawn and pallid, nor were his eyes marked with dark circles. He stood erect, his head high, his striking blue eyes sparkling with life once again. It would not occur to him until later that all of Jason's scars were gone. The only thing he thought had not changed was his hair, which was still snow-white. Turlough found himself wondering if this oddly maturing feature was what gave the prince the air of authority that suddenly seemed to surround him.

The astonished expression on his friend's face made Jason smile. "It's good to see you, too, Turlough," he said evenly, his voice strong and firm. "I know you have a hundred questions, but first, I need to know something. Do you think I'm crazy?"

"No."

Jason blinked, not having expected so immediate a response. "Don't humor me, Turlough. I need to know before we go any further."

There was a gravity in the voice that made Turlough's hair stand on end. He gave Amanda a sideways glance before turning back to the waiting Alterran. "Jason, I've told you this a dozen times over. I don't believe you're crazy. Period."

"What about the Doctor?"

Recalling the Time Lord's remarks in the Zero Room, Turlough lowered his eyes, his hesitation being answer enough.

"Until the facts are in, he's not sure," Jason guessed, receiving a reluctant nod. "That's all I needed to know." His eyes narrowed as he scrutinized the young man. "But you. You really are sure, aren't you? And you always have been. Why?"

Turlough shifted uncomfortably on his feet. He could see the shadow of the king that Jason would become in the face of the Crown Prince standing before him. Was it this very experience that had made him so serious in the future? Could he answer without distorting that very future?

After a long pause, Turlough said, "I'm sorry Jason. I can't tell you."

Dr. Spencer raised an eyebrow. "You certainly have a lot of friends with skeletons in their closets," she remarked aridly, she being one of them.

Nodding, Jason said absently, "Yeah. I could make a fortune with what I—" He broke off, his eyes widening. "No… It couldn't be as simple as _that_, could it?"

"There's only one way to find out," Amanda stated firmly.

"What? How?" Turlough wanted to know.

Jason held up his hands. "One step at a time. First, you need to know about Amanda's skeleton." Drawing a deep breath, he announced, "She really _is _Xandora Legrand."

"What!" The appalled Turlough turned to the embarrassed physician, who purposely avoided his gaze. He turned sharply back to the prince. "Jason—!"

"Don't even think it, Turlough," the Alterran prince admonished sharply. "She had nothing to do with what Curtis did to me. I don't have time to go into it now. You'll just have to take my word for it."

"Jason, even if I do believe you, nobody else will."

"I know. That's why An—I mean _Amanda_," Jason corrected, adding, "It's going to take a while for me to get used to that."

"Just as long as you don't call me Zannie," Amanda said sourly. "I hate that."

"I won't call you Zannie, if you don't call me PJ."

The prince received a puzzled look from his friends, but did not elaborate, saying instead, "Anyway, Amanda has to leave before Tolan finds out who she is and decides to shoot her as a spy."

Amanda gulped. "I think I'd rather be arrested."

Jason gave a brief smile and then looked the vexed Turlough in the eye. "And you and I have a job to do at Curtis's Research Center."

Amanda laughed at the horrified expression this induced. "And believe it or not, that's not even the crazy part."

* * *

While the prince went over the details of his plan, Amanda went back into the isolation room. She returned some time later with a computer disk that she placed on the console beside Jason who was setting the coordinates for the Research Center. After wishing the others luck, Amanda left, her immediate goal being to elude Tolan's security team before she was found out. Jason did not reveal her final destination even to Turlough, thinking it safer if no one other than himself knew to where she was staying.

By this time the thoroughly confused Turlough was not sure who was crazy anymore. Jason for thinking his plan would work, or himself for agreeing to go along with it. He watched on the viewer as Dr. Spencer left the TARDIS and was puzzled when she suddenly hid behind the desk. The reason became apparent when the Doctor entered the isolation room.

"Jason!"

The prince looked up, a pained look coming to his face. "Sorry, old friend," he muttered and hit the dematerialization switch. The time rotor lit up, rising and falling as the TARDIS took flight.

The appalled Time Lord watched in disbelief as he beloved police box suddenly vanished before his very eyes. Recovering himself almost immediately, he made straight for the communication room.

Relieved, Amanda came out of hiding and slipped out the door making for the Foundation's shuttle bay and the _ARGO,_ Jason's forgotten spaceship.

* * *

In the Sorenson Mansion, the Commander was annoyed when the radio suddenly interrupted his concentration, his annoyance quickly fading when he learned of the disappearance of the TARDIS, which he thought safely locked away in the isolation room.

"Who was inside when you left?" he asked, feeling his heart in his throat when he heard the Medical Officer's name. Then Jason's panic-stricken pleas that he not be left alone with her returned to his mind and he felt his heart turn over.

Finding his voice at last, Tolan said, "You'd better get up here, Doctor. I've found something even worse, but I don't want to broadcast it over an open channel."


	24. Return To The Source

**Chapter Twenty-Four**

**Return To The Source**

The hijacked TARDIS materialized in the Research Center not far from the extraction room. Turlough switched on the viewer, rotating the scanner to see absolutely no one. The place was deserted, not unlike the console room. Jason had disappeared into the depths of the time machine from almost the moment they took flight.

Crossing to the inner door, Turlough called, "Jason, come on! We've landed. It won't take them long to figure out where we've gone." There was an echoing reply he could not make out. A few minutes later, the Alterran appeared carrying a crate that he set on the floor beside the wall. He then pressed a button and a panel opened, a bed gliding out from behind.

"I hope you're not thinking of taking a nap," Turlough said sarcastically.

With an odd smile, the prince said, "Just being prepared."

"We're not trying for a merit badge. Let's go. There's no one about."

Looking over at the viewer, Jason nodded. "Don't be fooled by appearances," he warned. "Curtis murdered almost two dozen people here already. I wouldn't want to add to the tally."

The two had scarcely stepped through the doors when Jason vanished back into the TARDIS, calling, "Hold on. I almost forgot something." A minute later, he returned to the corridor.

"Are you sure you're ready?" came the caustic inquiry.

Not waiting for a reply, Turlough led the way to the computer room. Jason got as far as the door and stopped short. The memories of the horrors he had endured beyond it made him recoil and he paused a moment to collect himself.

"Are you sure you want to go through with this?" Turlough asked concernedly.

Not even wanting to be near the building, Jason gave him a dark look. "What do you think?" he asked acidly. Drawing a deep breath, he pushed open the door and entered, seeing the room clearly for the first time. The sight of the extraction couch made him shudder and he tried to put it out of his mind, crossing to the main computer terminal. To his surprise he saw it was active and checked to see who was logged on, finding, to his added surprise, that it was Tolan, who was attempting to locate the file on Xandora Legrand. Jason severed the link, knowing this would very likely pinpoint his location. He went on to lock out all outside access before setting to work. Within a few minutes he had overridden the system's security protocol thus allowing himself unlimited access to all system files. He then downloaded the disk Amanda had prepared to aid him in his task. The next step was the one he dreaded. He went to the extraction couch and asked Turlough to strap him in. Reluctantly, his friend did as he was asked.

As the last of the bindings was secured, Jason asked mildly, "Turlough, why are you doing this?"

Since the Alterran had said almost nothing since entering the room, Turlough was startled by the sudden inquiry. "Yo…you asked me to," he stammered out nervously.

His reaction amused the prince. "No. I mean, why are you helping me? Seriously. I know everybody thinks Curtis succeeded in driving me insane. What makes you so positive I'm not?"

"Maybe I'm the one who's insane. Did you ever think of that?" his friend retorted as he fitted the extraction helmet into place. "I must be to go along with this. You could kill yourself with this stunt. You know that, don't you?"

"What difference does it make? If they catch us, they'll probably lock me up for the rest of my very long life. I think I'd rather fry my brains now than endure centuries of confinement completely sane."

Unable to think of a suitable response, Turlough activated the helmet. Jason caught his breath, his body going rigid as the connections were made. He exhaled slowly, his body relaxing at the same time.

"I hope you know what you're doing," Turlough muttered darkly. He went back to the main terminal and reached for the controls, adding in irony, "I hope I know what _I'm_ doing."

* * *

The Doctor arrived at Constance's study to be informed that, as far as Tolan could tell, Amanda Spencer and Xandora Legrand were one and the same person. Quite naturally, the Time Lord was aghast. If the Commander's suspicions were true, then he had already tipped off the very person they were trying to catch. Before the Doctor could reveal this, however, Tolan said, "I'm trying to get an identity match from HH's memory extract, but the computer is having trouble locating it."

Inwardly, the officer hoped he was wrong. The last thing he wanted to learn was that he had entrusted the life of the Crown Prince of Tel-Shye to the daughter of his kidnapper. Especially after the prince had been so adamant in identifying her. Was she the one responsible for the three attempts on his life? Or worse, had she kidnapped him yet again?

After a lengthy search, the computer finally located the file, beeping in victory and then going blank, this being the exact moment Jason terminated the link at the Research Center.

Constance blinked. "What happened?"

"The link's been severed at the source," Tolan announced, looking up in horror.

"I'm a fool," the Doctor moaned, telling of his blunder in tipping off Amanda. "I should've listened to him."

"We all should have," the Commander injected darkly, adding, "We've got to find him."

"Oh, Tolan," Constance moaned helplessly. "Just because the link was severed there doesn't mean they're at the Center. They could be anywhere. And it took us _weeks_ to find him before."

Having already thought of this, the officer gave her a sour look. "Doctor, how well can Turlough operate your TARDIS?"

Knowing where this was leading, the Time Lord told him that his companion could, to a limited degree, pilot the TARDIS, but was nowhere near as skilled as Jason, whose phenomenal memory had allowed him to master the skill.

"They _both_ know how to operate it?" Tolan cursed under his breath. "We're going to need the locals—"

"Oh, no," Constance moaned. "We just got them out of here."

"I know," came the equally disheartened reply. "We'll have to start with the Center, and to do that, I have to contact those inept fools who call themselves a military force." Flashing an uncharacteristically devilish smile, Tolan added, "That doesn't mean I have to exclude my own people, though."

* * *

In the Research Center, Turlough started Jason's program running and after what seemed like forever, the console registered success. The Alterran had penetrated the computer system from within. What followed was an amazing display of flashing lights, clicking circuits and swirling images on terminals. This went on for more than an hour during which time Turlough tore apart the adjoining storerooms in an unsuccessful attempt to find the extraction disks the Doctor had left behind. From time to time he would look into the computer room to keep tabs on the prince's progress.

Turlough had just stepped back into the extraction room when the displays abruptly went blank. Across the room Jason drew a sharp breath, a clear sign that he had completed his task. The young man waited a moment longer to make sure the Alterran was out before closing down the system. As he went to disconnect his friend, he heard the implant prongs withdrawing with a snap as he crossed the room. He pushed the helmet away in distaste and reached for the restraints, only to hesitate. _What if the trip inside the main frame actually did fry Jason's brains?_ Looking down at his unconscious friend in an agony of uncertainty, he wished he had never had his glimpse into the Alterran's future.


	25. A Shocking Discovery

**Chapter Twenty-Five**

**A Shocking Discovery**

Before Turlough could come to any conclusions, the prince jolted awake and started to struggle. "Jason, it's alright," he soothed, putting a hand on his friend's shoulder. "It's over. You did it."

The familiar voice immediately calmed the dazed Prince Jason and he blinked hard to clear his vision. "Over? Oh yes…the program, of course." He leaned back to relax only to jolt up again, pulling impatiently at the bindings. "Turlough, hurry up! Get me out of this thing! There's an invasion force on its way to Alterrous."

"What!"

There was too much to tell and no time to explain. Jason gave an annoyed growl, closing his eyes and doing something that Turlough did not think he could. He transmuted, releasing himself from his bonds instantly. Sliding to his feet, the Alterran reached up to the implant caps protruding from his scull and, to his friend's revulsion, proceeded to pull the probes from his head, embedding them like knives into the extraction couch. The look of unbridled hatred on his face sent a chill down Turlough's spine. "Transmission codes," Jason growled angrily, stabbing the probes into the material to punctuate his words. "They couldn't get anything worth blackmailing someone for, so they settled for the transmission codes for the security satellites at the Outer Boundary. What am I? Some great celestial code book?" Once he finished removing all the implants, Jason ruffled his hair and it instantly changed from white to black. Turning on his heel, he stormed over to the computer, still muttering to himself.

Turlough was glad the prince knew what he was talking about, because he was not following a word. He was, however, following behind his friend and caught him as his legs suddenly seemed to weaken. "Here, you sit down before you fall down."

The Alterran did not argue and allowed himself to be helped to a chair at the computer. He suddenly felt completely drained from having transmuted twice in such a short period of time with low energy reserves. He pulled the energy cylinder from his pocket, giving it a gentle squeeze, his body lighting up momentarily in response. Closing his eyes, he drew a deep breath, the energy within the tube flooding into him once again.

"Look, you rest a minute," Turlough said quickly, going over to another terminal station. "Just tell me what you want done. I _can_ work one of these, you know."

Jason smiled weakly. "Okay. See if you can patch into one of Aegis' communication satellites. I was able to connect the radio link in Legrand's office into the main system." Looking down at the keyboard in front of him, he said, "While you're doing that, I'll see if I can write a program that'll stop that invasion fleet without alerting them that we've discovered their secret."

An involuntary squeak escaped Turlough. "Oh, that shouldn't be too hard," he said, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

"You just let me worry about that," Jason snapped. "Am I in charge of this operation or not?"

"Oh, you're in charge all right," the young man replied in the same sarcastic tone. "Because this is one lunatic scheme if ever I heard one." The Alterran said nothing, giving him a reproving glare before turning his full attention to the computer. Turlough finished within minutes and decided to continue his search for the missing extracts.

"They might be in Legrand's office," Jason suggested without looking up. "I'm not sure where exactly, but An—_Amanda_—said something about the Doctor reviewing them here."

"Are you kidding?" Turlough grunted. "He spent the first couple of weeks after we found you pouring over all that stuff."

Looking up, the prince asked forcefully, "Then where is all that stuff? After that android showed up, they never came back here. For all we know, Legrand came back and got them. He might even've translated them, since Tolan was kind enough to patch the system through to the Foundation. And now that he doesn't have to turn them over to anyone, he can sell each one off to the highest bidder." Seeing the obvious question on his friend's face, Jason held up his hands. "It was all in the comput—" He broke off when the main view screen suddenly flickered into life. It showed the enormous invasion fleet amassing near the Outer Boundary of the Alterran system. The two friends stared at the image in awe.

"There must be hundreds—_thousands_—of them," Turlough breathed, bringing the prince back to his senses.

"This had better work," Jason said as he returned his attention to the keyboard.

"Jason, if you don't tell me what you're doing, _I'm_ going to go crazy."

The prince flashed an amused smile before explaining that the Outer Boundary was simply a barrier of satellites that safeguarded the Alterran home world against invasion. It allowed only those ships transmitting the proper transmission codes (all of which he knew) to pass. If the codes were not sent, a warning message was triggered automatically. If the warning was ignored, the satellites destroyed the ship.

"And now that's not going to happen," Turlough concluded. A sudden thought struck him and he asked, "Why wait so long?"

"What?"

"They've had the codes for…what? Two months, maybe longer."

"You can't carry off an invasion overnight," Jason replied astutely. "We're just lucky we found out before the Imperial fleet had to get involved."

"Your people can't hold them off?"

"I'm not even sure who _they_ are. And if I can finish this program, I'll be able to get the satellites to destroy them for us." The radio suddenly crackled and Jason turned a knob, catching his breath when Commander Tolan's authoritative voice suddenly came through the speaker, "..._sure of that location? Legrand's Research Center?"_

_"Yes, sir. There's no doubt. The sensors indicate one silicon-based lifeform inside."_

Jason cursed his own body chemistry upon hearing this.

_"Do not enter," _Tolan ordered_. "Repeat. Do not enter. Will arrive your location within the hour."_

The transmission signed off sending Jason into a flurry of activity, his hands flying over the keyboard. "We've run out of time. You'd better get out of here, Turlough. No use both of us getting killed."

"Killed! Jason, what're you talking about? That's Tolan."

The prince grunted. "Somebody has tried to kill me three times since I got out of this place. And right now, neither of us is safe until this program does its job."

"I'm not leaving until I've found those disks," Turlough announced. He turned on his heel and made for the door.

"Carefully," his friend called after him. "We still don't know if we're the only ones in the building."

* * *

Because of the time constraints, Turlough took the direct approach in his search and ransacked Legrand's office. He dumped out drawers, overturned furniture, looked for hidden panels and pulled down paintings in search of a safe. He was in the storage closet dumping out files when the building started to shake. Turlough knew this meant Tolan had arrived and he had run out of time and decided to finish up with the room before returning to fetch the prince. With any luck, they could escape in the TARDIS before the Commander found them.

Outside, the Aegin patrol was getting a quick briefing from the Alterran Commander, who had brought the Doctor and a few of his own men with him. A few minutes later, the entire group stormed the building. By this time Jason had been able to scramble their sensors, making it appear as though he were in several places at the same time. Then, once they were well into the building, the lights went out.

"Well…it's obvious someone knows we're here," the Doctor observed dryly.

"What's she up to?" the Commander of the Aegin forces asked, having wrongly assumed Xandora Legrand to be the one behind the prince's return to the Center.

"Nothing spectacular," the Time Lord replied mildly. "Just playing with us."

"Terrific. Searching a building this size in the dark is always my idea of fun," the officer moaned before ordering, "All right, everyone, spread out. And be careful. She's already got two hostages. Let's not make it more."

Tolan was about to voice an objection but was forestalled by the Doctor, who took hold of his arm and pulled him back telling him to wait. As soon as the Aegin forces were gone, he said, "I think you and I should search together, Commander."

"Don't you think we should stay with the others to see they don't start shooting at shadows?" Tolan replied.

"I'd rather they didn't start shooting at Jason. You and I know this building better than any of them. And," the Time Lord added calmly, "I've a notion I know where he is."


	26. Rescue, Part 2

**Chapter Twenty-Six**

**Rescue, Part 2**

Jason was hoping no one would start shooting at him, either. The computer let out a beep and he looked down to see his program had run through its latest test without a hitch. _Finally!_ _Now all I need to do was transmit it._ He reached for the button only to stop, his hand hovering in midair. Pressing it would mean the end of the invasion. It would also mean the end of thousands of lives. Did he have the right to make this decision? Angry with himself and his own morality, Jason slammed his fist on the console, cursing under his breath. There were millions living on Alterrous and their lives depended on his pushing that button. He_ had_ to do it.

The door suddenly opened and Jason looked up, leaning back in his chair as the newcomer entered.

* * *

The Doctor and Tolan were making their way towards the computer room when they heard gunfire further ahead. The Commander was instantly on the radio demanding to know what had happened.

Lieutenant Fane appeared as all units reported no contacts. The sound of running footsteps suddenly came from the opposite direction and the Imperial Guardsmen pulled their weapons in unison, almost scaring the life out of Turlough as he came out of the darkness.

The Doctor thought his companion might be running from a pursuer. "Turlough!" he gasped. "Are you alright?"

"I heard…shots," came the breathless reply.

"So did we," Tolan informed. "I think they came from the computer room."

"Oh no…" gasped the appalled Turlough. "I left Jason in there!" He tried to run but was prevented by Tolan, who had no intention of letting the unarmed youth out of his sight. As with the first rescue, he cautiously led the way toward the computer room.

"How did you get away?" the Doctor wanted to know.

His companion was completely baffled. "Away?"

"From Amanda?"

"Amanda? Doctor, what're you talking about?"

It was Tolan who replied. "We've reason to believe she's Xandora Legrand."

The Doctor and Tolan expected some kind of reaction, but not the one that they received. Turlough merely grunted. "She is. Jason told me already. We left her at the—" He broke off at the sound of another shot. This time there was no doubting it had come from the computer room.

Stopping just outside the door, the Commander looked over at Fane, who nodded, taking up a position on one side of the door while Tolan went to the other. On the count of three they burst into the room, weapons in hand.

It was empty.

Or so it at first appeared. There was blood splattered on the wall behind the main console and Tolan went cautiously over to it, the Doctor and his companion entering behind him.

"No…" Turlough moaned.

The Doctor followed after the Commander, finding the gravely injured Jason behind the console. He was lying in a pool of blood, his back against the wall. The Time Lord got down beside him and was relieved when he heard his labored breathing. "He's alive," he announced.

Turlough leaned over the top of the console and groaned. "I shouldn't've left him."

"Never mind that now. Where's the TARDIS?"

"Down the hall just outside."

The Doctor nodded approvingly. At least they didn't have far to go.

"He needs a—" Tolan turned sharply to his Lieutenant. "Fane, you're a medic."

The Lieutenant gave him a helpless look. "Commander, I have no supplies. We need to call for transport."

"No time," the Time Lord cut in sharply. "We'll use the TARDIS."

Commander Tolan nodded his agreement, contacting the others to let them know Prince Jason had been located and was being transported from the building. Fane did what he could to prepare the prince to be moved, his ministrations bringing the semi-conscious Jason back to his senses. He groaned in pain and opened his eyes to see the Doctor beside him. He took hold of the Time Lord's arm and whispered in an urgent tone, "Doctor…stop them. Must…stop them… thousands… Transmission…make transmission."

"Uncle Jay, please, don't talk," Fane said gently.

Jason did not seem to hear him, his eyes remaining fixed on the Doctor's face. "Doctor, please. Andy…in danger. He knows! Tell Andy…he knows!"

Turlough had no idea what this second message meant, but he knew what the first one did and looked down at the computer, seeing that the customized program had been completed but not transmitted. _Why?_ he wondered. A horrifying thought struck him and he looked back at his critically injured friend. Had the person behind the invasion discovered Jason's attempt to sabotage it? Perhaps they had been watching the whole time and seized the opportunity to strike while the prince was alone. It seemed a strange coincidence that he should be struck down just as he was about to transmit his disruptive program.

As the wounded Prince Jason was gently lifted from the floor, Turlough stayed where he was, making as if to stay out of the way. Reaching across the console, he casually initiated the program before following the others to the TARDIS.

Jason was placed on the bed in the console room that he himself had prepared only a short time before.

"Do you want me to reverse—?" Turlough flinched away when the Doctor turned a murderous look in his direction.

"Close the doors," the Time Lord ordered. He strode over to the console, controlling his temper with visible effort. His companion was spared his wrath when the TARDIS abruptly dematerialized the moment the doors were closed.

"Jason must've preset the coordinates!" Turlough gasped. "So _that's_ what he was doing." He took a step toward the navigational controls, backing away as the Doctor drew near.

"Those aren't the coordinates for the Foundation," the Time Lord observed in bewilderment, discovering at the same time that the controls had been locked.

"Great," Tolan moaned. "So where _are_ we going?"

"Home," came the quiet answer.

They all turned in surprise to Prince Jason, who had said nothing since being brought into the TARDIS and they had all thought he was only semi-conscious.

"Uncle Jay, please, you mustn't talk," Fane said worriedly.

"Home," Jason repeated, squeezing Fane's hand. "I set…I set…" He shivered and a groan of pain escaped him, his grip tightening. Closing his eyes tightly, he licked his lips to try and moisten them. "Shock…dehydration… Not good. Bleeding…too fast…too fast…" the former Healer diagnosed weakly.

Looking at his commanding officer, the Lieutenant said helplessly, "I don't have what I need to stop the bleeding."

"Box…" the prince whispered. "Look in…box…"

The Doctor and Tolan exchanged a bewildered look, turning to the equally baffled Fane. Turlough, on the other hand, caught his breath, his eyes widening. "The box, of course!" He dove at the crate his friend had brought out, finding it filled with medical supplies, including several bottles of synthetic blood. Clearly impressed, he pulled one out, looking over at the prince. "You get your merit badge."

Jason gave him a weak smile. "Be prepared."

"This is too much," Tolan muttered.

Fane had already taken the blood from Turlough and immediately started the transfusion. He then began tending to the rest of the prince's wounds as best he could, being both relieved and disquieted at having his patient issue the instructions on how best to treat him. It was not until the Medic immobilized his badly broken forearm that Jason finally lost consciousness.

The journey "home," while not long, seemed endless to the worried occupants of the TARDIS. When the time machine finally materialized the Doctor activated the scanner to see an enormous mansion just outside. "Well, it's not the Royal Palace," he observed blandly.

"No. It's Starbridge House!" Fane gasped in amazement.

"Starbridge?" the Doctor repeated. Turning back to the viewer, he gave the house a closer look, recognizing the front entry of the house where Jason had been born and raised. "Good grief, he really did mean home." Pulling the door lever, he said, "Let's see who's about."

"Doctor, we've got to get Jason to a hospital!" Turlough objected, finding his voice at last.

"Turlough, Starbridge _is_ a hospital," Fane said firmly. "There's always a Healer in residence. And because of its remote location it has its own operating theater."

"How on earth do you know that?" the Doctor asked in amazement.

"I practically grew up here, remember?" the Lieutenant reminded.

Fane lifted the unconscious Prince Jason into his arms and placed him on a stretcher that Turlough had discovered in the hall just outside the inner door. (Yet another of Jason's startling preparations.) Heading towards the door, the young officer said, "Shall we see who's on call?"


	27. Starbridge House

**Chapter Twenty-Seven**

**Starbridge House**

Even more surprises awaited within Starbridge. The group arrived at the main door to be admitted without question, the wounded Prince Jason being taken to an examining room where Roxell, the resident Healer, was waiting. The puzzled travelers were shown to rooms that had apparently been prepared in advance.

"It seems we were expected," the Doctor remarked to the others. The servant indicated their rooms, going on to say that a change of clothes would also be provided.

The Doctor was taken aback by this, not having realized until that moment that, save for Turlough, they were all covered with blood. He accepted the servant's offer, going on to arrange to meet the others in the downstairs waiting area once they had gotten cleaned up.

Tolan and Fane went to their adjoining rooms where they went over the security measures that needed to be taken. The Commander had the Lieutenant discreetly contact Tel-Shye's Royal Guard to have a small security force sent to assist in securing Starbridge until his own team of Imperial Guards arrived.

* * *

Tolan arrived at the waiting room the same moment as the Doctor and Turlough. It seemed an eternity before anyone came to tell them what was going on. Finally a nurse appeared to inform them, not to their surprise, that Prince Jason had been taken into surgery. She handed the Doctor a paper, informing, "Healer Roxell insisted that I give you this and tell you the implants have been removed."

The Doctor stared unbelievingly at her. "That's impossible!" he gasped. "They're inoperable."

"As you can see from the image, there are no foreign bodies of any kind in Prince Jason's scull."

From his place across the room, Turlough informed softly, "He pulled them out."

The mental picture this conjured up made even the Alterrans shudder.

"I'm sure you already know the surgery will take some time," the nurse went on. "Healer has ordered a meal prepared for you and suggests that you wait in the library. You'll be able to use the communications station there, Commander. It's the only one in the house set up for secure transmissions."

Glancing in the direction indicated, the Doctor hesitated, remembering the library to be one of Jason's favorite rooms, which was probably why it was the only one with a security set up. He was unable to refuse, however, as Tolan was already out the door and making his way down the hall.

Lieutenant Fane was already in the library, accompanied by three Royal Guardsmen. He informed his commanding officer that Tel-Shye's Royal Guard had put out a priority call to King Aaron, informing him of his son's whereabouts. As fate would have it, this was one of the rare occasions when the monarch was not on Tel-Shye. Tolan gave a satisfied grunt before ordering a security sweep of the area, to be followed by a continuous patrol.

While all this was going on the Doctor was silent and benignly wandered the room. His mood changed dramatically the instant the door was closed and Turlough realized he had not been spared the Time Lord's wrath after all. He had only been given a brief reprieve.

"I want an explanation and I want it now," the Doctor demanded.

"Doctor, I—"

"What were you thinking!" the Doctor exploded. "You were supposed to be looking after him, not chasing after shadows!"

"We weren't chasing shadows!" his companion objected. "We were chasing after Legrand. Jason thought he could find out who hired him."

"How?"

His companion shifted uncomfortably on his feet. "By going into the computer and running through the logs."

The Doctor gave him a blank look. How did Jason expect to find out what he, Constance and Tolan had been unable to find in weeks of searching?

"By using the implants to go in mentally," Turlough informed hesitantly. "He switched off all the security protocols so he could link into it through the extraction helmet."

The Doctor was horrified. "_He what?_ And you let him! How could you be so stupid?"

"Why? Because I don't think he's a raving lunatic?" came the forceful reply. "He wants to find the man who made his life a living hell and then tried to kill him. Is that so crazy? I don't think so. If he'd told you his plan, you'd've thought he was mad, wouldn't you? But he's not mad, Doctor. You didn't see him after he left the Zero Room. He was himself again."

The Doctor opened his mouth but was cut off.

"I know what you're going to say, but you're wrong. Jason did find something. More than even he suspected." The young man went on to tell of the invasion force currently amassing at the Alterran border.

The Doctor was beside himself. "Is there anything else you may've overlooked telling us until now? An assassination plot, perhaps?"

His companion responded with a dark look. There was a great deal more he desperately wanted to tell, but he did not want every detail met with hostility.

The appalled Commander was already at the communication link in the corner of the room. It took him only a minute to access the satellites' long-range surveillance system. "They're on the move. Just coming into range," he announced, seeing the fleet on a direct course for his home world. "How do they expect to get through the Outer Boundary?"

Turlough cleared his throat before saying quietly, "By using the transponder codes Legrand got out of Jason's head."

"What! They have _all_ the codes!" the horrified Commander gasped.

"Jason said they know everything he knows. And, apparently, he knows them all."

"We'll never get them all changed before they reach the Outer Boundary."

"Jason wrote a program he said would take care of that," the young man informed, adding hesitantly, "At least, he hoped it would."

"Great," the Alterran officer sighed. "Any other encouraging news?"

"Don't ask," the Doctor injected darkly. "We learned this little tidbit when I asked the same thing, remember?"

His companion scowled, choosing not to respond.

Tolan rolled his eyes, turning back to the terminal. "I'll contact the Emperor. There still may be something he can do."

Turlough sighed and turned hesitantly back to the Doctor. The look he got in return made him shudder. He never felt in more trouble than he did at that very moment.

"Come over here," the Time Lord hissed.

Were it anyone other than the Doctor, Turlough would not have complied. Nevertheless, he knew, in spite of his obvious anger, the Time Lord would not strike him, even though he seemed very tempted to.

"What did you mean about finding Legrand?" the Doctor asked quietly.

Relieved to finally be asked a question in a normal tone of voice, Turlough tried to reply in the same way. "Jason thought the android was sent to throw you off."

"Why?"

"Because you never went back to the Center after it showed up. Someone's been there, too, because I tore the place apart and couldn't find the extracts you told me about."

The Doctor stared into space. It had never occurred to him the android might have been a red herring. How could he be so stupid as to leave the Center wide open like that? To his relief, Tolan informed him that he had sent Fane to collect the extracts the day after they returned to the Foundation. "They're all safely locked up in Constance's study," he said calmly.

"I'm glad one of us thought of it," the Time Lord remarked.

With a wry smile, Tolan said, "I better've thought of it. Leave or not, I'm still Head of Imperial Security on Alterrous."

A servant arrived at that moment to announce that dinner was served. The three exchanged glances, none of them especially in the mood to eat. They did so anyway, however, as it seemed an absolute certainty it was going to be a very long night. Turlough was glad to have his interrogation put on hold for any reason. But once the meal was over, the trio returned to the library and the questioning resumed in earnest.

"Alright, Turlough, out with it," the Doctor said coldly. "What was the plan? And I mean the whole plan?"

"Doctor, I've been _trying_ to tell you, but you won't let me," his frustrated companion replied. "Amanda—"

"Amanda!" the Doctor groaned, rolling his eyes. "Don't tell me she's in on this, too? No wonder Jason got himself shot."

"She wasn't even there!"

"She wasn't at the Foundation, either," Tolan injected. "Believe me, we looked. And the Research Center is only about a sixty kilometres away. She could've used a transmat to cover that short a distance."

"Why bother? She could've killed him at the Foundation any time she liked. But she didn't."

"No. But a mysterious stranger suddenly appears out of nowhere to do the deed at a location only you and she knew about," the Commander snapped acidly.

"I don't care what you say, Tolan," Turlough replied defiantly. "Jason doesn't believe she's involved, and I believe him, even if you don't."

The Alterran officer gave him a cold and angry look before going to the communication link. "I'm afraid I have to go by evidence, not anyone's beliefs, including HH's. He's not infal—" Tolan broke off and scowled down at the screen. There was a priority message waiting for him and he read it in bewilderment, turning back to the others. "The Emperor has ordered a security blackout on all information pertaining to HH's whereabouts. And—he wants Miss Legrand held at Starbridge." Exchanging a puzzled look with the Doctor, he asked, "Do you ever get the feeling everybody knows what's going on but you?"

"Yes. And I don't like it." The Time Lord turned pointedly to his companion, who reflected on the irony of this remark. Usually it was the Doctor who knew what was going on and everyone else who was in the dark.

"If you'd both stop interrupting me," Turlough said in exasperation, "I could tell you what you want to know."

"All I want to know is where Xandora Legrand is," Tolan said coldly.

"I don't know."

"Why not? I thought she was a part of the plan."

At that moment the door opened and a familiar voice said, "What's all the shouting about? I thought all the action was in the medical wing."

To the astonishment of the men in the library, Amanda calmly stepped through the door.


	28. Arrested

**Chapter Twenty-Eight**

**Under Arrest**

"What are _you_ doing here?" Tolan demanded in a rare display of anger.

Amanda's eyebrows went up. "And hello to you, too, Tolan."

"Amanda, he knows who you are," Turlough informed warningly. "And he thinks you're the one who shot Jason."

"What? That's ridiculous. I've been here since this morning. You can ask Roxell."

"Why?" the Commander demanded.

"_Why?_ Oh, for goodness sake, Tolan, don't pretend to be stupid, it doesn't suit you," the physician snapped impatiently, her condescending tone astonishing him. "Jason sent me here to hide from you."

"There, you see!" Turlough exclaimed. "Jason told me—"

"Jason told all of us," the Doctor cut in sharply. "We just didn't believe him."

"I'm glad you didn't or I never would've been here to save his life," Amanda informed bluntly.

"What?"

"I came down to tell you he survived the surgery—just—and is in the recovery room just inside the medical wing."

Tolan was incredulous. "You took part in the surgery!"

"You could say that. I performed it. I am a surgeon, Tolan, even if—" Amanda broke off, taking an automatic step back when the officer advanced menacingly. "Tolan, for pity sake, I'm his doctor! _Your_ Medical Officer, remember?"

"Be that as it may," Tolan said coldly, "I'm still sworn to protect him. Until all the facts are in, you are no longer my M.O. _or_ HH's doctor. In fact, I can't allow you anywhere near him."

Amanda felt a knot the size of a watermelon in the pit of her stomach when she saw his hand moving towards his gun. Throwing a frightened look in Turlough's direction, she said shakily, "And I thought Jason was kidding when he said he'd shoot me."

Tolan made no reply, his hand resting atop his weapon. He drew himself to his full height of nearly two meters, his face cold and stone-like.

"If I'd wanted to kill him, don't you think I'd've done it by now?" Amanda said reasonably, echoing Turlough's earlier statement.

"I'm not entirely convinced one way or the other," came the evasive reply. This, in point of fact, was not true. Tolan had come to rely on his instincts, and he had a gut feeling she was telling the truth. He could not allow this to get in the way of his duty, however. At least, not yet.

Turning to the scowling Time Lord, Amanda said desperately, "You were there, Doctor. Jason had plenty of time to tell you about me when you took him to the Zero Room."

"I do recall his being rather hostile towards you at the time," he replied icily.

"Do you also recall his allowing me to give him a pain killer?" Amanda asked pointedly. "Do you really think he'd've done that if he thought I was the one drugging him senseless?"

The Doctor gave her a startled look, the incident having slipped his mind entirely. "No, I don't suppose he would."

"Well, Commander?" she asked, turning back to Tolan. "What do you say to that?"

As usual, the Commander's face revealed nothing of what was going on in his mind. "I say you could be telling the truth," he replied blandly. "_Or_ I could say you were trying to win him over in order to betray him later on."

"But I didn't!"

"The decision isn't mine, whatever I may think," Tolan went on calmly. "I'm only—"

"He's only doing his job," came Constance's voice from the communication link. "My Lord, I haven't heard _that_ in a long time."

Spinning around, the Commander stared at the screen. "How did you get this broadcast frequency?" he demanded.

"My, my, aren't we touchy today," Constance quipped. "_You_ called _me_, remember? I got your message and was calling to tell you the _ARGO_ is missing, but you obviously know that already."

The Commander threw a questioning glance back at Amanda, who informed, "That's how I got here."

"Tolan, what the devil's going on?" Miss Sorenson demanded. "Why are you suddenly so cloak and dagger after all this time?"

"HH has been shot."

"What!" Constance gasped, a hand going to her mouth.

Dr. Spencer took a tentative step towards the screen. "If I may…? I can fill you _all_ in on his condition."

Tolan considered a moment, saying at last, "Go ahead."

The gist of Amanda's report was that Prince Jason was hanging on to life by a thread. Once he was out of recovery, Roxell planned to move him to his old bedroom on the top floor. If his condition did not improve over the next several hours, it was very likely he would die there.

After a long pause, Tolan squared his shoulders and looked coldly at Dr. Spencer. "I want an explanation."

"Of what?" she asked, thinking he meant of her run down of the prince's condition.

"Why did you lie? If, as you say, you had nothing to hide…"

Amanda bristled, returning his look with an equally icy glare. "Just because Jason and I have a history doesn't mean I owe you an explanation, Tolan. I've explained myself to him. And he's the only one I own one to."

"Wrong," came Constance's authoritative voice from the communication screen. "I hired Amanda Spencer, not Xandora Legrand."

"_You_ didn't hire me, Constance, Thorson did," the physician corrected sharply. "All he cared about were my qualifications, and I didn't lie about those."

"You still lied about who you are, _Miss Legrand_," Tolan cut in sharply. "And my orders are to take you into custody."

Despite the fact that she had known the Commander for several months, Amanda still felt a wave of panic wash over her when he bore down on her. She knew he worked closely with Prince Jason and had learned that his loyalty went beyond a professional level. She therefore expected him to hurt her, clamping down on her arm with vice-like force or twisting it behind her back before dragging or shoving her from the room. To her amazement, he did none of these things. Tolan's grip, while powerful, was not painful, nor did he rough her up in any way. Despite his obvious anger he was still an Alterran, his true nature repulsed at the thought of inflicting violent (and unnecessary) harm upon her.

"Doctor, you've got to do something!" Turlough objected as the protesting Amanda was taken away.

"He won't hurt her, Turlough," Constance informed knowingly. "He'll only scare her. He's very good at that."

The Doctor nodded, knowing she spoke from experience, she having once been arrested by the Commander herself. "You'll have to keep Jason's whereabouts to yourself, Constance," he said soberly. "The Emperor has ordered a security blackout, and to be frank, I'm astonished Tolan just violated it."

"That depends on your point of view. Since Aegis is out of his jurisdiction, I'm kind of his liaison here. He left a stack of things for his men to do while he's—" Interrupting herself, Constance asked quietly, "Is he taking her to Alterrous?"

"No. Oddly enough, the Emperor has ordered her held at Starbridge."

* * *

The critically injured Jason's mental stability suddenly seemed inconsequential as he hovered between life and death. The Doctor insisted on watching over him during the night, which as far as anyone knew might well be his last. Only the beeping of the prince's life support monitors broke the silence of his vigil.

For a long time the Doctor stood at a large sliding glass door gazing into the night. It was a rare night, Tel-Shye's twin moons full and high in the sky. Far in the distance he could see the moonslight reflected off of the ocean waters and readily understood why his friend had chosen this room as his own. The Time Lord would have liked to go out onto the rooftop porch to take in the rest of the sparkling night sky, but knew better. The last thing that Jason needed was to be exposed to the unfiltered elements.

Tearing himself away from the tranquil scene, the Doctor took a seat in the easy chair near the glass door. Sighing heavily, he pulled out his half-frame glasses and put them on, opening the laptop computer on the table beside him. The compact unit contained the extensive dossier Tolan had accumulated on Xandora Legrand (a.k.a. Amanda Spencer) and he proceeded to read the document files. Or at least, he tried to read them. It had been a very long day, and even though he was a Time Lord and did not require the same amount of sleep as humans, he was not immune to fatigue. Eventually he dozed off.


	29. Mythryn

AUTHOR'S NOTE: When I originally wrote this story, I got to this point and thought, "I really need to start wrapping this thing up." Suddenly there's this character appearing, literally, out of thin air, and I realized the story had somehow taken on a life of its own. I had to put it aside for a while before finally finishing it.

* * *

**Chapter Twenty-Nine**

**Mythryn**

It was morning before the Doctor realized and he awoke with a start. To his astonishment, he saw a young woman suddenly materialize at Jason's bedside. She was tall and slim, with fine features and long dark hair that flowed past her waist. She looked down at the prince and smiled ever so slightly, shaking her head in disbelief. "Still alive, my prince?" she whispered, her voice having an almost musical quality. "You really are hard to kill, aren't you?"

Even thought Jason was beyond hearing her, the Doctor was not. He pulled off his glasses, putting them and the computer aside before rising to his feet. "Who are you?" he demanded.

A gasp escaped the intruder and she spun around, staring intently at him before relaxing. "Oh, you're a Time Lord," she sighed. "That explains it."

"I think you're the one who should be doing the explaining. Who are you?"

"My name is Muriel."

The Doctor looked the woman up and down. She had a wreath of spring flowers upon her head and wore unusual flowing garments that seemed to float and twist around her in a non-existent breeze giving her an almost spectral appearance.

Suddenly the Doctor knew what she was and his eyes grew wide. "You're a Mythryn!"

Muriel's eyes sparkled and she inclined her head. "Yes."

The Time Lord threw an apprehensive look in the unconscious Jason's direction. "Are you the one responsible for all this?"

Clearly appalled, the Mythryn said, "No!" adding hesitantly, "Not…exactly."

"Then _how_ exactly? Just what is going on?"

Muriel lowered her eyes before telling him the responsible party was one of her own people, Mythryn Andrea, who had assisted in manipulating Jason's plight to the point of bringing in Legrand's second set of financial backers when the original ones withdrew funding. "That gave Legrand the freedom to take out his revenge any way he pleased," she concluded sadly.

The Doctor controlled his outrage with visible effort. "Who bought the transponder codes? Do you know?"

"Daleks," came the unexpected reply.

"What! She brought the Daleks into this!" the horrified Time Lord gasped. Tolan had assured him the Imperial forces could repel any invasion, but he seriously doubted they could hold off the unrelenting attack of the Daleks. And even if they could, they might well lose the entire human population of the outer planets before the Imperial forces got there.

"Yes. They're so boring, aren't they?" Muriel said blandly, breaking the Doctor's train of thought. "Exterminate, exterminate, exterminate. That's all they know. They have absolutely no imagination whatsoever."

"Imagination!" the Time Lord exploded. "Is that all you can think about? It's bad enough you're lot is involved without bringing the Daleks into it."

Muriel bristled. "My lot, as you put it, isn't involved, Doctor. Andrea went rouge. What _your_ lot would call a renegade. I'm just trying to put things right."

"I wish I could believe that."

The Mythryn was prevented from issuing a biting remark when the Doctor asked, "So where is she, your sister Mythryn?"

"I don't know. She disappeared after she shot PJ—I mean, Prince Jason. I had to—"

"After she what! _She's_ the one who shot him?"

Muriel nodded and the Doctor rolled his eyes. Now he'd heard everything. "No wonder there was no trace of anyone," he groaned. "Since when did your people start getting physically involved in your epic adventures?"

"We don't, Doctor. That's forbidden."

At that moment Turlough entered and he stopped dead in his tracks when he saw the Doctor arguing with thin air. _Was everyone going mad?_ "Doctor, who are you talking to?" he asked slowly.

"A Mythryn," came the unhelpful reply. "And before you say anything, I know you can't see her."

His companion gave him a skeptical look. "If you say so."

"Just take my word for it," the Doctor snapped impatiently.

"As _you_ took _his_ word about Amanda and PJ?" Muriel reminded sharply, having read the young man's thoughts.

The Time Lord stiffened, stung by the verbal slap in the face. She was right and he knew it. "Let him see you."

"You're awfully pushy, aren't you?" Muriel said disdainfully. The Doctor's face darkened and she shrugged, throwing a quick glance in his companion's direction that would allow him to see and hear her.

Turlough caught his breath, turning sharply to the Doctor, who held up a hand. "I'll explain later," he said and then returned his attention to the Mythryn. "You said you were trying to put things right. How? Why, exactly, are you here?"

Looking down at the helpless Prince Jason, Muriel gave a bittersweet smile. "I came to help him."

The Doctor's response made her jump. "No!" he thundered. "You let him be. Your people have done enough damage."

"Doctor, you don't understand—"

"I understand one thing. He doesn't have the power to fight you. But I do." The look on the Doctor's face was identical to the one Turlough received in the TARDIS and it still made him cringe. It made the Mythryn cringe as well. She took an alarmed step back, throwing up her hands. "No, Doctor, I know better than to do battle with a Time Lord." Her admission availed her nothing, the Doctor's metal energy forcing her further from the Alterran's bedside. "Doctor, please!" she cried fearfully. "You don't understand!"

"Leave him be," came the cold reply. "In fact, just leave."

"He'll die!" Muriel exclaimed, still backing away from the heat of his anger. "If he doesn't get the energy he needs, he'll die. I can't let that happen. I can't!"

To the Doctor's astonishment, Muriel burst into tears. Such was his shock that he actually pulled back on his attack, becoming all the more intrigued when she remained rooted to the spot, unable to go forward yet staunchly refusing to go back. There was a great deal more to this uncharacteristic show of emotion than met the eye. "Why are you so interested in helping this one man? An Alterran, at that," he asked suspiciously. "I thought the Mythryn tastes ran toward the more violent, barbaric races."

"He's…different."

_Different! That was one way of putting it_, the Doctor thought. As a whole, the Alterrans were a passive race, violence being repugnant to them. Yet Jason was a paradox, possessing the Alterran abhorrence of violence and an exceptionally violent temper, something he had always likened to an erupting volcano.

"You mean he's volatile, don't you?" the Doctor said pointedly. "Emotional? Explosive?"

"I know what you're thinking, Doctor, but it's not like that," Muriel said defensively. "Prince Jason can tell you—"

"Prince Jason is in a coma!"

Muriel held up her hands. "I mean his memory experiences. You're a Time Lord. I can utilize your power over Time to take you to any event he was involved in. You can see for yourself what happened at the Center."

The Doctor had heard the Mythryn possessed such a power, but never dreamed it were actually true. There were other things about the meddlesome race he did know to be true, and after a long silence, he said slowly, "Alright. But on one condition. _I_ maintain control."

This was not the reply Muriel expected and she shuddered. With the Doctor in control she would be his prisoner, trapped wherever he chose, including within in his own mind. Considering the amount of mental force he had already used against her, she knew she would be no match for him. Until he relinquished control, she would be at his mercy.

The Mythryn looked down at the unconscious Jason, and her decision was clear. "Agreed," she said shakily, wiping the tears from her face with a trembling hand.

The Doctor nodded approvingly, dropping the metal barrier he had placed around his helpless Alterran friend. "What must I do?"

"You'll need to touch him."

Recalling the reaction his last encounter brought about, the Doctor hesitated, puzzling the Mythryn. "Your time aura is what makes the memory link possible."

"It also causes quite a shock to his system," the Time Lord informed. "I'm not sure he's up to that." He was startled yet again when Muriel said, "Oh, yes, I'd forgotten about the scanning." She looked over at the bewildered Turlough and suggested using him as a bridge. He would have direct contact with Jason while the Doctor would have contact with him. "And I can still make the link work."

"And what happens to me?" Turlough wanted to know.

"You'll be a part of the link. Seeing what the Doctor sees."

The young man looked from one to the other before agreeing. He was just as curious as the Doctor about what had happened after he left Jason alone. He took a step towards the bed, stopping when he was told to lock the door.

"I don't want to be interrupted," the Doctor said sternly. "This could be very dangerous."

Turlough looked at the trembling Mythryn and asked, "For which one of us?"


	30. Memories

**Chapter Thirty**

**Memories**

Despite her inability to fight off the Doctor's attack, Muriel's other skills were impressive. The Time Lord had barely taken hold of Turlough's hand when the mental link was established. Suddenly it was as though they had been transported into the Research Center's computer room, standing back as invisible observers. As promised, they saw the events exactly as they transpired.

The Doctor was stunned when he saw the physically restored Jason walk through the doors, seeing what his companion meant about his being himself again. The reluctant Turlough followed and as their conversation replayed itself the Doctor realized he had gravely misjudged his companion and threw an apologetic look in his direction. It was all too obvious the boy had not gone along with the Alterran's plan as wholeheartedly as he had assumed.

The speed with which Jason wrote the intricate satellite program amazed the Doctor, who could feel his friend's inner turmoil when the time came to transmit it, his hand hovering over the button. Even to destroy an invading enemy caused Jason to hesitate, for it still meant taking a life, or in this case thousands of lives. By this time, the Doctor was so caught up in the events playing out before him, he lost himself completely…

Jason slammed his fist on the computer, annoyed and angry with himself and his own morality. The door opened and he looked up, expecting Curtis Legrand to step through. To his amazement, a young girl entered and he leaned back in his chair and stared at her. She looked around the room, seeing the implants embedded in the extraction couch. "Oh, you took them out," she whined.

Jason was incredulous. "Who the devil are you?"

"A messenger," she replied sweetly.

Jason blinked. "A messenger? From whom?"

"The holder of your destiny," came the grandiose reply.

The Alterran's eyebrows went up and he folded his arms. "And they think _I'm_ crazy," he remarked aridly.

The girl the Doctor assumed to be Andrea went on to say, "He said you'd come back."

"He did, huh?"

"Yes. I was to wait for you."

"And why's that? In case I discovered…oh say, an invasion plot, perhaps?"

"You weren't supposed to find out!" Andrea whined, stamping her foot.

"I didn't just find out. I'm putting a stop to it," the prince stated flatly. Before the girl could protest further, he demanded, "Alright, enough games. Who's really behind all this?"

Andrea obligingly told him that Legrand's original benefactor was her employer, who had always known the extracts were indecipherable. He had orchestrated and financed the kidnapping, but the ultimate goal having always been to gain possession of the transponder codes. Since Legrand would never have agree to something so trivial, the first phase of the plan had been engineered to simply discourage him and thereby make him more willing to listen, his reward being total control over the captive Alterran prince.

"And after he'd driven me insane, then what? Was I supposed to die on that abomination over there?" Jason spat bitterly.

"You were supposed to be rescued and taken to Alterrous. Why they kept you here on Aegis, I'll never know," came the baffled reply.

As a Healer, Jason knew the answer to this. If all he had heard about his condition when found was true, he was far too unstable to be transported anywhere. And at the Foundation he would still be under the protection of the Argonauts.

"So the invasion wipes out Alterrous and me with it. Was that the plan?"

"Yes. My master doesn't seem to like you any more than Legrand does," Andrea said matter of factly.

Jason could feel his temper rising and rose to his feet. "If he hates me that much, why didn't he come himself? Too afraid?" The next question went unasked. He knew he would not get a straight answer and could only guess at the identity of this mastermind.

Andrea snorted indignantly. "He has more important things to worry about. That's why he has servants."

"Servants like Legrand?" Jason hissed. "I'm surprised he didn't send him along with you."

"That fool? He's useless. He's gone completely over the edge."

"No kidding."

"Ever since you were rescued, he's become obsessed with ruining his daughter's life."

"What?" The Alterran's eye grew wide and he straightened. "So he's trying to destroy Andy instead of me now, is he?"

"Not instead of you. _Because_ of you."

Jason was horrified, his blood running cold. "Is he going to kill her?"

"I don't know. Probably," Andrea replied vaguely. "She's his problem, not mine. Not a part of the plan at all."

"And neither is my stopping the invasion, is it?"

"No. The plan was for you to die." Suddenly this seeming child pulled out a handgun. "Now, you get to die a hero." So saying, she emptied the weapon into the aghast Alterran.

For Jason, high-energy weapons were no threat, as he was able to absorb their energy without effort. Old-fashioned projectile weapons were another matter entirely. He needed time to transmute into another form when they were used against him. Otherwise, they were deadly.

The bullets slammed Jason back against the wall, spinning his body around and causing it to jerk with each impact. It was not until his attacker ran out of bullets that he dropped like a stone to the floor. To his surprise, he did not lose consciousness and rolled painfully onto his side.

"Not dead yet!" Andrea said in annoyance as she came to stand over him. "I can't believe how hard it is to kill you."

Unarmed and completely helpless, Jason could do little more than watch as the assassin slowly and methodically reloaded the weapon. With an evil smile on her face, she brought it down to his temple. "Not going to beg for mercy?" she asked tauntingly.

Jason looked into her cold, emotionless eyes and swallowed hard. "Just get it over with," he whispered, closing his eyes and waiting for the inevitable. He heard her mutter, "So brave," in an approving tone. Then the gun exploded and he jumped, being even more amazed when he realized he had not been hit. He opened his eyes to see, to his added amazement, Muriel grappling with the enraged Andrea.

Muriel pulled her sister Mythryn away from the downed prince shoving her against the wall and knocking the gun from her hand. Cursing under her breath, Andrea promptly vanished.

With the immediate threat gone, Muriel turned her attention to the seriously injured Alterran. She knelt beside him, shaking her head. "Oh, PJ, what has she done to you?"

"Yo…you…saved me," Jason breathed unbelievingly. "Why?"

"Sssh, hush now," Muriel said softly, putting her fingers to his lips. "You must save your strength."

"But…you're not…"

"I know. We're not allowed," the Mythryn soothed, stroking his cheek. "We're not allowed to shoot people, either."

"What?" Jason gasped. "She's the one—?"

"Yes. Please forgive me. I never dreamed she'd go this far." Suddenly Muriel looked up as though listening. "You'll be alright now. Your friends are coming."

The prince could feel his strength ebbing away and leaned against the wall. "You must go."

"They won't be able to see me."

"Muriel, please…"

"PJ, I can't leave you. You need my help."

Swallowing hard, Jason insisted, "You must…stop her. Please…for me."

Sensing the others drawing nearer, Muriel looked up again. "I can't go without doing something."

"Nothing…you can do."

Thinking hard, she said at last, "Yes, there is. I can give you sustaining energy. It'll give you something to draw on until you get some proper help." Placing a hand on his bleeding chest, she sent a wave of energy through his body that would double his reserves for a short time. Picking up the gun, she said quickly, "I'll be back. I promise," and gave him a peck on the cheek.

"If I'm not dead…I'll be at…Starbridge," the prince whispered, closing his eyes the moment she disappeared.

A split second later, Tolan and Fane burst through the door. When the Doctor himself entered the room, the memory link ended.


	31. Purified Energy

**Chapter Thirty-One**

**Purified Energy**

What had seemed like hours had actually been only minutes, the passage of time within the memory link being purely perceptual. For an untrained participant, such as Turlough, the temporal disturbance this creates can be incredibly draining, and as soon as the link was broken, he collapsed, completely exhausted by the experience. Having anticipated this reaction, the Doctor caught him as he fell, placing him in a nearby chair.

It took a minute for the dazed young man to regain his equilibrium. The Doctor brought him a glass of water and Turlough took a few sips, the cool liquid helping to bring him back to reality.

"I didn't realize the link would be so long," the Time Lord said apologetically. "Are you alright?"

His companion put a hand to his head. "I don't know. I think so. I'm so…dizzy."

Patting the young man's shoulder, the Doctor said simply, "Temporal imbalance. It'll pass in a bit."

Suddenly one of Jason's monitors started to squeal and the Doctor spun around just as Muriel exclaimed, "He's in cardiac arrest! We're too late!"

Hearing Healer Roxell and her staff thundering up the stairs, the Doctor ordered, "Start the energy transfer."

"I can't!" Muriel recoiled when he turned to her, a cold and angry look on his face. "If I try while he's unstable, I'll kill him."

The Doctor only just managed to unlock the door and pull it open before Roxell and the others burst in. There was a brief flurry of activity after which Jason's condition was stabilized. Once the invisible Mythryn was certain he would remain stable, she began the transfer. Closing her eyes, she concentrated, her body blurring momentarily. Then a cloud-like stream appeared and moved slowly from her body into that of the comatose Prince Jason.

The Doctor nodded his approval, turning his attention to Healer Roxell, who had just finished dismissing her staff. "Roxell, what are his chances? Realistically?" he asked.

The Healer looked at his set expression, the carefully rehearsed evasive speeches flashing through her mind, all of which she knew he would reject. "To be truthful," she said at last, "I didn't expect him to survive the surgery, much less through the night." Shaking her head, she admitted, "As far as I can tell, the only thing keeping him alive is that incredibly strong will of his." Glancing at the door, she said, "I'd better let those security people know about this."

"I'll tell them," the Doctor volunteered. "I have to talk to Tolan anyway." He waited until Roxell had gone before turning back to his visibly recovered companion. "Wait here. According to Muriel, that invasion force is the Daleks."

"Not again," Turlough moaned.

"Yes. And as you saw, Jason never got the chance to transmit his program."

"I know. I sent it," his companion informed startlingly.

The Doctor blinked. "_You_ sent it? When?"

"After we found him." Holding up his hands, the young man said, "And before you get angry, I didn't tell you because I was afraid Jason had been shot to prevent its being sent. I didn't want them to know it went out anyway."

"Good thinking," the Doctor said approvingly, much to his companion's surprise. He turned to leave, only to stop and turn back. "I say, Turlough, that _is_ everything, isn't it?" he asked mildly. "You're not holding anything else back?"

"No, that's everything." Glancing over at Muriel, Turlough asked, "How about you?"

The Time Lord straightened. "Yes, I did say I'd explain, didn't I?"

Turlough chose not to point out that the Doctor always promised to explain. Since this seemed one of those rare occasions when he actually seemed inclined to do so, he gave the Time Lord what he hoped was his best expectant look.

"You studied Earth mythology, I believe," the Doctor began calmly. "Well, in ancient times, our friend Muriel would've been thought to be a fairy or a sprite."

"What?" His companion turned in amazement to the silent Mythryn.

"You may recall these mischievous spirits liked to stir up trouble," the Doctor went on. "Whispering into the ear of one ruthless, ambitious individual and then warning the poor unfortunate they'd singled out as their hero. That's what Mythryn do, you see, manipulate lives and situations to make a legend come into being." He threw a scornful look in Muriel's direction. "Apparently Jason and the New Argonauts was too good an epic to pass up."

Turlough took all this in in an appalled silence. Just as the Doctor assumed, he was indeed familiar with the Earth myth of Jason and the Quest for the Golden Fleece. He was also familiar with the other epics of its time. Happy endings were not the order of the day. Usually the hero of the piece either died violently or continued in a life beset with tragedy. Now it seemed the newest Jason would suffer one of these fates as well.

Turlough looked up sharply when Muriel suddenly snapped, "No one can guarantee the future, Turlough. Would you rather I'd just let him die and not have to face it?"

"Oh, yes. They can also read minds," the Doctor informed belatedly. Shifting his gaze to the agitated Muriel, he said, "Jason seemed to know he was being manipulated. Did you tell him?"

"Yes. On Aegis," the Mythryn admitted. "I thought he should know outside forces were at work around him."

"Why? Doesn't that go against your code or something?"

Muriel gave the prince an affectionate look, saying only, "I owed him one."

The Doctor rolled his eyes and sighed heavily. Was there a single female in the cosmos who had come in contact with Jason and not fallen under his spell? He kept this thought to himself, saying blandly, "You and a majority of the Argonauts, it seems." With that, he vanished through the door.

After an awkward silence, Turlough got to his feet, going over to the bed. He could see the stream of energy pouring into the Alterran's body, causing it to glow ever so slightly. "Just… what are you doing, exactly?" he asked hesitantly.

Muriel gave him a long, searching look before breaking into an amused smile. "You make yourself out to be a coward, yet you risked danger to protect PJ," she said quietly, startling the young man. This was not what he expected to hear. "He has a true friend in you, Turlough."

"I guess I owed him one, too."

Smiling again, Muriel held up the energy tube Turlough thought had been lost at the Center. She explained that she was able to filter its output to supply Jason with what Alterrans referred to as purified energy. Unlike other energy sources, this did not have to be converted; it could be stored or utilized immediately. Given Jason's present over-weakened condition, he would have to restore his energy reserves before his body could begin repairing itself. Even so, Muriel admitted that if she were not careful even the purified energy could burn him out.

* * *

The Doctor went to find Commander Tolan, only to be told he had already gone to join the Imperial forces, Lieutenant Fane having been left in charge during his absence. To the Doctor's surprise, the importance of the matter was never even questioned when he went to the Lieutenant and told him he needed to speak to Tolan immediately. Fane took him directly to the library and put in a call to his commanding officer.

"Doctor, I can't stay on Tel-Shye forever," Tolan objected. "That invasion force is picking up speed—"

"I'm not calling to get you back, Tolan," the Doctor broke in. "Quite the reverse. There's a great deal more going on than any of us realized." A sudden thought struck him and he asked, "Is this transmission secured?"

The Commander scowled. This was the last thing he expected to be asked. Touching a button, he informed, "It is now."

Lieutenant Fane did the same. "You're secure this end, too, Doctor."

The Doctor nodded approvingly, going on to tell the appalled Commander Tolan the identity of the invaders. He then went on to tell of his encounter with Muriel and the memory link. "If what I saw is what actually happened—and I've no reason to believe it did not—then Amanda, or Xandora, or whatever you want to call her, isn't lying. She was framed."

Tolan did not respond right away, his expression set. "If that's true, she's in as much danger as HH," he said at last.

"Considerably more so, I should think."

"Then for her own safety, she's better off right where she is, especially with the blackout in effect." Before the Doctor could reply, the Commander went on, "Fane will need your help if we're going to pull this off, Doctor. Amanda's best protection is for no one to know what you've just told me. If the real traitor thinks we're after Amanda, then perhaps they'll let their guard down and start making mistakes."

The Doctor was forced to agree that this was a solid plan. Unfortunately, it also meant keeping Amanda under lock and key.

"The Emperor ordered her held at Starbridge," Tolan said, and flashed a rare smile. "He didn't say she had to be kept in solitary confinement. I've already left standing orders that she be allowed as many visitors as wish to see her, so long as they go in one at a time."

Clearly impressed, the Time Lord gave the officer a sideways glance. "You never did believe she was involved, did you, Tolan?"

The Commander shook his head, admitting, "No. She's far too intelligent to be that obvious. And—as everyone keeps telling me—she could've killed HH as soon as we found him. Or easily arranged another abduction. Why she stayed is a mystery to me. Especially after Constance offered her that extended leave. Why come back? She had to've known HH would identify her as soon as he came to his senses."

"Well, I'm no expert," the Doctor remarked aridly, "but I do know Jason, and he has a way with the ladies, let me tell you. Amanda said they have a history, and that suggests—to me, anyway—that they were once romantically involved."

Tolan's reaction mirrored the Doctor's. He rolled his eyes and groaned, being all too familiar with the prince's affect on the opposite sex. Choosing to avoid the subject completely, he asked, "And what about this rouge Mythryn? How do we guard against her?"

"You let me worry about her," the Doctor said firmly. "Your weapons won't have any affect. You have to use mental force against them."

"I'll leave it to you, then." Tolan drew a deep breath and said seriously, "I don't know how long it'll be before that fleet reaches the Outer Boundary. And if that program fails…" He left the sentence unfinished knowing if the program failed, he might not return at all. Wishing them both luck, he signed off.

The Doctor turned to Lieutenant Fane, seeing a worried look on his usually cheerful face. Unlike his commanding officer, the young man's expressions were a great deal easier to read. "Worried about Tolan, or your assignment?" he asked.

The startled Lieutenant cleared his throat nervously before saying, "I'm worried about my family."

The Doctor wanted to kick himself for having forgotten that, as an Imperial Guard, Fane's family would have had the honor of being relocated to their home world of Alterrous, as the vast majority of the Alterran population was scattered throughout the Empire. Clearing his own throat, he quickly apologized.

Fane seemed to find the Time Lord's reaction amusing and grinned. "Should I be worried about my assignment, Doctor?"

"There is a very real danger, Lieutenant," came the deadly serious reply.

The smile vanished from Fane's face and he was suddenly completely serious. "Well, if anybody does try to get at Uncle Jay or Amanda, they'll have to go through me first."


	32. Protective Custody

**Chapter Thirty-Two**

**Protective Custody**

Turlough and Muriel ended up having a lively conversation during the Doctor's absence. The young man remembered hearing the prince apparently talking to someone in the console room and his remarks about not being called PJ, a nickname Muriel had used. She confirmed that it was she Jason had been talking too, his remarks about the nickname having been aimed at her since she was still present when he made them. When the Doctor returned, Muriel immediately stopped talking and the smile vanished from her face.

Choosing to ignore this obvious snub, he asked, "Any change yet?"

"None that you can see," his companion replied somberly. "But Muriel says his reserves have normalized."

The Time Lord nodded approving. "Amanda's asking to see you," he informed suddenly.

"Do I have to go through Tolan first?"

"Commander Tolan has gone to join the Imperial fleet. He's left Lieutenant Fane in charge while he's away."

"Great."

"I told him who our invading friends are and managed to get him to approve your seeing Amanda at the same time."

"Did you bother to tell him she's not the one who shot Jason?" the young man hissed icily.

The Doctor stiffened visibly. "Don't you take that tone with me, Turlough," he said warn­ingly. "And don't go telling Amanda about the mind link, either. Don't tell anyone."

"Why not? Do you think Muriel made it up?"

"No. I just don't think it'll help. Fane can't do anything one way or the other until Tolan con­tacts the Emperor."

His companion thought this over a moment before looking over at Muriel, who said, "The Doctor's right. Dr. Spencer already knows she's innocent. As long as you tell her you believe her, she won't feel completely isolated."

Looking from one the other, Turlough sighed. "Alright."

* * *

Following her arrest, Amanda had been confined in an isolation room, her only company having been the security guards. Lieutenant Fane had come by that morning to inform her that he would be looking after her in Tolan's absence and she was amused when he asked if she were comfort­able. It was then that she realized, to her own surprise, that she enjoyed his company. Perhaps it was because he was not nearly as stoic as his commanding officer. (He even had a sense of hu­mor!) It could also have been because she had gotten to know him so well during Jason's lengthy stay in isolation. Fane had been the only officer other than Tolan with whom she had had any prolonged contact, especially when security was tight.

Now security was tight again and there was Fane, back in charge of another isolation room.

When the door opened, Amanda assumed it to be the routine security check and was pleas­antly surprised when it turned out to be Turlough, the only person who seemed to be on her side. She would not learn until later that Roxell was also on her side, the Healer having been the one Jason had contacted to arrange for her hiding place.

When lunch arrived, Turlough made to leave only to stop when Amanda asked that he stay and join her. Unlike him, she was not a solitary person and the thought of spending most of her time, and all of her meals, alone was intolerable.

The sentry was less than cooperative, annoying the already irritated Turlough. He took the radio from the guard and called Lieutenant Fane, preparing himself for a fight. To his surprise, the request was granted without hesitation.

* * *

When Turlough returned to Jason's room he found the Doctor gone and Roxell disconnecting the prince from his life support system. "He's drawing purified energy from somewhere," the baffled Healer told him. "I don't know where it's coming from. No one else in the house is feeling it."

Throwing a meaningful look at Muriel, Turlough said, "He's not in any danger, is he?"

"Danger! Turlough, this is a miracle."

The young man smiled knowingly. "You mean a Mythrycle," he said under his breath. He watched as the equipment was taken away, sighing heavily when the staff had gone. "Where's the Doctor?" he then asked.

Muriel stiffened involuntarily before telling him the Time Lord had gone to confer with Lieu­tenant Fane. Suddenly the room seemed to sway and she grabbed the headboard, a hand going to her head.

"Are you alright?" Turlough asked concernedly.

Muriel looked up sharply, giving him a weak smile. "Just a little tired."

The young man scowled, looking down at Prince Jason. "Just how much of that energy comes from you as it's filtered?"

The Mythryn waved a hand in the air and tried to make as if there were no danger, but Turlough quickly discerned that this was not the case.

"Muriel, you can't do this to yourself. You've been at it for hours. You know Jason won't thank you for killing yourself on his account." Going over to her, Turlough was glad when he found he could touch her and pulled her from the bedside and over to one of the chairs. "You have got to rest."

"No, I can't stop. What if the Doctor comes back?"

"So what if he does?"

Unbeknownst to either of them, the Doctor had already come back and was standing on the other side of the door that had been left ajar by the departing staff. He was about to announce his presence when he heard Turlough say in an astonished voice, "You're not afraid of him, are you?"

"Aren't you?" the Mythryn asked shakily.

The Doctor's companion almost laughed out loud. "No."

"Well, he scares me," Muriel said, hugging herself. "I've never faced a Time Lord before. I never realized—" She broke off and shuddered. "He's so powerful."

Turlough stared open mouthed at her. _Were they talking about the same person?_ He heard himself asking, "He didn't hurt you, did he?"

"No," came the meek reply.

"What then?"

"I made a terrible mistake. I thought when he learned the truth—" Shivering again, she said, "PJ trusts him implicitly. That's why I agreed to give him control." Seeing the young man's blank expression, Muriel cried, "Don't you understand? I'm under his control. If I don't do as he says, he…he…" Burying her face in her hands, she moaned, "I don't have the power to fight him. I'm a prisoner here."

Turlough was appalled. "I don't believe it!"

"It's quite true, actually," came the Doctor's calm voice from the door. Muriel gasped and tried to rise only to be prevented by Turlough, who insisted she stay right where she was until he knew what was going on.

With raised eyebrows, the Time Lord remarked, "You'd better be careful, Turlough. You're starting to act like a hero." He received an appalled look from his companion. He then turned to Muriel, who shrank back. "Muriel, I relinquished control before I went to see Tolan," he in­formed calmly.

Muriel blinked. "But… I don't…" she stammered. "Why didn't I feel it?"

"I don't know. Perhaps I frightened you more than I realized. If that's so, then I apologize. I never meant to frighten you. Nor did I intend for you to endanger yourself. My only concern was protecting Jason."

The Mythryn looked from the Doctor to Turlough and back. "You mean…I'm free to go?"

"Yes. You always have been." Looking at the unconscious Alterran, the Doctor said mildly, "Although, I would appreciate your further assistance, if you still want to give it."

Following his gaze, Muriel jumped to her feet. "Of course!"

"There's no need for you to tire yourself further," the Doctor said quickly. "Jason appears strong enough to come back on his own."

"What would you have me do, then?"

"Find out who hired Legrand," came the startling reply. "I've been thinking about what your sister Mythryn said. About her master knowing the extracts were untranslatable. When you think about it, it doesn't make sense. Two of the attempts on Jason's life didn't just frame Amanda, they were direct attempts by someone trying to find the translation key."

"That's a tall order, Doctor, but I'll do my best." Muriel hesitated before saying, "But… be­fore I do anything, I must—"

"Clear it with your people, yes, I know," the Time Lord completed for her. "You might men­tion that I'm Lord President of the High Council. It may speed things along."

The Mythryn gave him an astonished look. "Lord President," she breathed in awe. "No won­der I couldn't fight you." With that, she promptly vanished.

The Doctor saw the look of disapproval on his companion's face and responded with a weak smile. He knew exactly what he was thinking and was not about to get into it.

Suddenly Muriel reappeared, saying, "I've just remembered. The purified energy might give PJ some problems." Seeing the Time Lord's face cloud over, she held up her hands. "You're fa­miliar with the after effects of an extended energy conversion, aren't you, Doctor? The disorien­tation, heightened emotional state, and so on?"

The Doctor nodded, immediately seeing where this was going. "You're telling me he'll have much the same symptoms?"

"No, actually, he'll have almost none of the usual symptoms. I'm not sure how you'll be able to gauge it. That's why I wanted to warn you. His brain is out of whack again because of that re­turn trip into the computer. It may be the last thing to start functioning properly."

The Doctor drew a deep breath, looking to the ceiling in dismay. "Alright," he sighed, "we'll be prepared for anything."

The Mythryn had her doubts about this but kept this thought to herself. Unable to help her­self, she looked him up and down and giggled, "Lord President," before vanishing yet again.

"Is there anything else that can go wrong?" the exasperated Time Lord moaned.

As if in answer to his question, there was a quiet knock at the door. The Doctor exchanged glances with his companion and then turned, his mouth dropping open when Jason's wife stepped through the door.


	33. Inner Boundry

**Chapter Thirty-Three**

**Inner Boundary**

"Shadra!" the Doctor gasped once he recovered from the shock. "When…? How did you…?"

A small smile came to the princess' regal face but she did not respond directly. "Roxell tells me Jason's doing better than expected."

The Doctor invited her in with an outstretched hand. She went to the bedside, stroking the prince's face and kissing him tenderly. The Doctor brought her a chair and she sat down, taking hold of her husband's limp hand. She started to cry softly and the Time Lord decided it was time to respectfully withdraw from the room. "We'll leave you two alone," he said gently, waving for Turlough to follow. He stopped short when Shadra called after him.

"No, Doctor, wait. Before you go, I need your help. I wanted to thank Amanda for all of her help. I've been traveling since she last contacted me, and now I can't find her. And everyone I ask gets this odd…" The princess blinked. "You're doing it, too. Doctor, what's happened? She's alright, isn't she?"

"Tell her, Doctor," Turlough said sternly.

"This isn't the time," the Time Lord hissed.

"Tell me what? Doctor, please. I've talked to her nearly every day since Jason was found. She's become a friend, not just his doctor."

The Doctor was silent too long for Turlough's liking and he blurted out, "Tolan arrested her!"

Shadra was horrified. "What! Why?"

The Doctor gave his companion an angry scowl before saying, "We found out that Amanda Spencer is, in reality, the daughter of Curtis Legrand."

"I don't believe it," Shadra gasped. "She seemed so genuinely concerned…"

"That's because she was," Turlough injected forcefully. The Doctor took him by the arm in an obvious warning but he was not to be silenced and pulled away in anger. "Amanda saved Jason's life more than once since this whole mess started. Even Tolan can't deny that."

"But…when he finds out who she is…"

"He already knows who she is. He's the one who sent her to Starbridge in the first place."

The amazed Princess Shadra looked inquiringly at the Doctor, who said, "It's true. I checked with Roxell."

"I still can't believe it," Shadra whispered.

Then something happened that none of them believed. Jason, very briefly, opened his eyes.

* * *

After his short conversation with the Doctor, Commander Tolan arrived at a rendezvous point where he joined the Imperial task force on its way to the Outer Boundary.

As the Alterran fleet neared the satellites, a prerecorded priority message from Prince Jason suddenly came through on Commander Tolan's personal security channel warning him to stay away from the frontier. The prince explained about the program he had entered changing the numeric override in the security system. It would be triggered by the transponder's verification protocol. The invasion fleet would be allowed to pass through the security net, but upon reaching a specific distance, what he called his own Inner Boundary, it would be destroyed. For safety sake, the prince begged the Imperial forces to stay well clear of this Inner Boundary lest they be destroyed, as he had been unable to completely debug the program.

Not wanting to trigger a disaster, the Imperial fleet stayed well beyond the new Inner Boundary. Orders were given that they do nothing unless the enemy reached a point beyond the danger zone. If they made it that far, then the program had failed.

Then they waited.

Despite the fact that all the outer planets were virtually unguarded, the Dalek forces ignored them, their target being the vast resources of the Alterran home world. They would take over the outer planets upon their return.

As soon as they were in sensor range, the Dalek Supreme hailed the Imperial forces issuing the usual demands that they surrender or be exterminated. The Alterrans quite naturally refused going on to issue their own demands that the invaders withdraw or face their own extermination. The Fleet Commander made as though uncertain of his forces abilities, hoping to bait the enemy into increasing its speed.

The Daleks took the bait, their fleet passing en masse through the Outer Boundary. The Dalek Supreme was in the middle of ordering its ships to attack when the entire invasion force was vaporized, Jason's program and the satellites having done their job.

Less than ten seconds after the destruction of the invasion fleet, a second prerecorded message was transmitted from Prince Jason. He prefaced it by expressing his delight that they were hearing it at all, since it meant his questionable efforts had not failed. He went on to explain that a secondary program was in the process of countermanding the first. Once this was done, an all clear would sound, paving the way for the laborious task of changing all the transponder codes.

With this crisis behind him, Tolan returned to Alterrous, reporting directly to the Lord Emperor. After a lengthy and personally rewarding audience, he set course for Aegis. Along the way he contacted several of his command posts, clearing up the considerable backlog of official communications that had accumulated in his absence. Once he had waded through the majority of them, he signed off his security line, finding several urgent messages from Constance on his personal one.

"Tolan! Where have you been?" Constance scolded the instant he made contact. "I've been trying to reach you for days."

The Commander smiled amusedly. "Sorry, Connie, I've been a bit busy sorting out every-thing that's piled up while I was with the Argonauts." Pausing, he added as if it were an after-thought, "Oh, yeah! And I've had an invasion fleet to deal with."

Constance was appalled. "What! They don't actually think they can cross the Outer Boundary, do they?"

"Well…they do have the transponder codes," Tolan said blandly. "Or so they thought. The satellites took care of them. I can't go into it just now, more cloak and dagger stuff."

Constance gave him a sideways glance before saying, "Now for my news. I got the comparison tests back and you were right, that radioactive material in HH's blood _was_ nuclear waste water."

Tolan opened his mouth only to be cut off.

"And you're lucky Amanda recorded its signature or we never would've been able to trace it."

"Not you, too," the Commander groaned. Before the woman on the screen could chastise him further, he said in an annoyed tone, "Look, I'm not the bad guy here, okay? I'm only doing my job."

"Yeah, I remember all about that," Constance replied darkly, recalling the time she had been his prisoner.

"Now, don't you start that with me," he said warningly.

Holding up her hands in mock surrender, Miss Sorenson said, "Okay, truce." Looking down at a paper on the desk, she went on to say, "There was only one person on your list who was on duty each time HH was drugged _and_ when that android showed up."

"And it wasn't Amanda," the Commander said knowingly. "Who was it?"

"Jolene Hyde, one of Thorson's aides. They arrested her when she showed up for work the day after we found out."

"Did she confess to anything?"

Constance nodded. "She's spilling everything she knows in exchange for a shorter sentence. Corporal Lenn has been staying with it. I'll have him contact you as soon as he gets back to the house."

"No, don't bother. I'm on my way to Aegis now. Hang on—" Tolan turned from the screen, calling to the flight crew on the intercom and then turning back. "My ETA is fifteen hours."

"I'll have Lenn prepare his report for you, then."

The Commander grinned. "You keep this up and I'll have to give you a commission."

The woman on the screen scoffed. "I think your Emperor might have other ideas on that."

"Oh, I don't know." Tolan held up a clear sheet of plastic with the Alterran Imperial seal embossed in gold in its center. "He gave me a present for you. In gratitude for your assistance, financial and otherwise, with the Argonauts."

"I don't suppose it's a reprieve, is it?"

"No, actually, it's an unlimited pass to visit HH." With a grin, he added, "Think you can be ready by the time I get there?"

* * *

As Muriel predicted, Prince Jason's recovery was less than smooth. After his brief flirt with consciousness, he sank back into oblivion, unable to rise past the surface. It was a few days later before he finally managed to break the surface and stay there. He opened his eyes and was surprised to find himself still alive. Then he noticed he was in his old bedroom, his wife at his side. _I'm dreaming. I must be._With Shadra so close at hand, he should have been able to communicate telepathically, but this proved impossible. Usually he could initiate the link without a second thought but could not seem to keep his thoughts together properly. To his further dismay, Jason found he could not move or speak. Sighing heavily, he looked longingly at the woman curled up beside him, desperately wishing he could put his arms around her just one more time.

Shadra awoke with a start, her husband's inner turmoil reaching her in a vague sort of way. Sitting up, she stretched and yawned. She saw Jason watching her and caught her breath. "You're awake," she gasped happily, kissing him tenderly. When he did not kiss back, her smile dissolved into an anguished expression as she realized he was unable to respond beyond blinking his eyes. She could tell he was trying to touch her mind, but could only understand disjointed words, most of which made no sense. It was at that moment Shadra wished she had been more attentive when Jason had tried to teach her how to fine-tune her telepathic skills. He had always been the one to initiate the mind-bond and she had seen no reason why she should bother. Looking into her husband's pleading eyes, she saw the best reason she could think of. Only now, it was too late.


	34. Back To Tel Shye

**Chapter Thirty-Four**

**Back To Tel-Shye**

As promised, Corporal Lenn's report was ready and waiting when Commander Tolan arrived on Aegis. Jolene Hyde had confessed to being the insider who had warned Legrand, drugged Prince Jason and attacked Turlough. The radioactive material had been supplied by an acquaintance who thought it to be part of a Foundation research project. (They were later cleared of any wrongdoing.) Ms. Hyde also supplied the names and locations of her contacts who had put out all the false leads the Argonauts had been chasing. She could not, however, supply the location of Dr. Legrand or the intermediary he had used since fleeing the Center.

Tolan was not surprised to learn the first attack on the prince had been intended to kill him. He was surprised, however, to learn it had not been intended to incriminate Amanda. This, apparently, came later when the android was introduced. It was also revealed that Jolene did not know Amanda was Legrand's daughter and was unaware of the implications of her actions other than to throw suspicion elsewhere.

The third and final attack was even more puzzling as Ms. Hyde had been given a list of questions to ask Prince Jason once she had administered the truth drug. Despite the fact that she had been unable to fulfill this last directive, Amanda's near discovery of her in the isolation unit only served to tighten the noose around the Medical Officer's neck.

As an aside comment, Jolene stated that she was proud her efforts had been good enough to actually fool the Commander into arresting Dr. Spencer.

* * *

In his cabin onboard the command shuttle, Commander Tolan sat rereading Lenn's report. A low growl rumbled from his throat and he shut the report, tossing it aside and turning to look out the observation port.

Across the room, Constance looked up and frowned. Tolan had been brooding since before they left Aegis, and seemed to be getting worse. "It's not going to change no matter how many times you read it," she said calmly.

Tolan threw her a dark look and then returned his attention to the stars.

Constance watched him for several minutes before saying, "Something's really wrong, isn't it?"

"I don't know. I don't like it. There's something not right about all this." As he spoke, Tolan began absently massaging the palms of his hands, a nervous habit Constance had come to know as meaning he was extremely worried.

"How did she know I arrested Amanda?" the disquieted officer went on. "Did she guess? And that intermediary. Was she the messenger who shot HH?" Shaking his head, he said again, "I don't like it, Connie. I just don't like it."

"Maybe you should call—"

"I called Fane while you were sleeping," Tolan admitted guiltily. "Everything's quiet."

"How's HH doing?"

"Apparently he's made a miraculous recovery. He was comatose and on full life support when I left. Now he's awake but—" Pausing, the Commander informed, "Apparently he's completely paralyzed. Roxell's afraid that…well, with all the stress and his having pulled out the probes, he may've suffered a stroke."

Constance put her head in her hands. "As if he hasn't gone through enough," she moaned.

Tolan nodded. "He has one consolation, though. Princess Shadra is there. It seems Amanda called her to tell her where he was before she came to tell us the results of the surgery."

"You mean before you arrested her," Miss Sorenson corrected sharply.

Tolan chose not to respond directly. There was a great deal more going on than Constance realized, but he was unable to tell her just yet. He rose to his feet, saying, "Before I signed off, I told Fane to put the house on Alert Status Two."

"Two! You really are worried, aren't you?"

"Not according to Fane. He thinks I'm—Now how did he put it? Oh, yeah. I'm being overly cautious to the point of paranoia."

Constance raised an eyebrow. "Rank insubordination," she said in mock surprise. "You'd better have a word with that young man when you get back."

This remark should have brought a smile to the Commander's face. Instead, he continued to prowl the room like a caged lion. Sighing heavily, Constance gave up trying to cheer him up and was relieved when the flight crew called to say they were approaching Tel-Shye.

* * *

Even though she had been confined to a ground floor isolation room, Amanda was glad she had not actually been isolated. She attributed her being allowed a steady stream of visitors solely to Turlough's intervention, and the Doctor chose not to correct this misconception in order to give credence to her assumed status as prisoner.

Among Amanda's visitors were a few surprises, the first being Shadra, who had actually torn herself from Jason's side to personally meet the physician she had once considered a friend. Uncertain what to expect now that she knew her to be Xandora Legrand, the princess had been wary at first. After a few minutes, her misgivings evaporated, and, much to Amanda's relief, they were friends again.

The second surprise came in the person of King Aaron, whom Amanda had actually met four years earlier while working on the original Lazarus Project. In fact, it had been this very meeting that had touched off the bitter, and seemingly endless, feud between herself and Jason. A feud Aaron was glad did not stand in the way of her saving the life of his only child.

Like Turlough, Healer Roxell had been a regular visitor. She brought regular updates on Jason's condition, her feeling being that Dr. Spencer's arrest was totally and utterly ridiculous. An opinion she did not fail to voice whenever the long-suffering Lieutenant Fane was in the vicinity.

On this particular morning, she was voicing her displeasure on a completely different subject, this being the conditions of the Alert. "Fane, you can't keep us here against our will," the Healer objected as the Lieutenant scrutinized the newly placed seals on the rear exits. "It's illegal."

"I'm not keeping anyone here other than Amanda," Fane said as he continued with his work. Before the Healer could comment further, he said quickly, "I'm trying to reduce the risk of unauthorized entry. That's why they call it security."

Roxell simply snorted.

"Until further notice, access is limited to the main door only," the officer informed. "All other exterior doors are to remain sealed and the transmats are being taken off-line even as we speak."

"What! You know how far out we are. How's my staff supposed to get here? And my supplies?"

"They'll just have to—"

"And Healer Turraan? How's he suppose to get back to the city? The king sent him to check on Prince Jason, not to stay indefinitely." Receiving no response, Roxell exploded, "Fane, you can't take all three of my transmats off-line."

Fane stopped dead in his tracks and spun around. "_Three!_ I thought there were two. Where's the third?"

"In the old receiving bay in the north wing of the house. You don't think I send contaminated materials out through the main ones, do you?"

The Lieutenant ground his teeth in annoyance, rolling his eyes to the ceiling. He had been working all night to secure the house only to find this gaping hole in his security net. "I'm glad you told me _before_ the Commander got back or there would've been hell to pay." Pulling the radio from his belt, he called for a security check as the irate Healer went back to her office.

All units reported all clear and the next senior officer in the house, Lieutenant Bowen of Tel-Shye's Royal Guard, reported that the main transmat and the cargo pad were now off-line.

"I just found out there's another one in the old receiving bay," Fane informed as he made his way through the house. "I'm on my way to take care of it now. As soon as that's done, the house is completely secure."

"Do you want me to key the main one to a security frequency?" Bowen asked.

"No, better wait until Commander Tolan arrives. He's in one of his ultra-cautious moods. If I know him he won't want any of them operating until he's physically present in the house."

* * *

Had he arrived in the receiving bay five minutes earlier the Lieutenant would have been able to prevent the entry of three masked intruders who materialized on the receiving pad while he was speaking to Bowen. They heard him coming and waited, striking him from behind the moment he entered the room.

Although dazed, Fane managed to stay on his feet, throwing off his attackers one at a time. The first to fall came up with a broom and slammed it across the Alterran's shoulders as he was in the process of transmuting. The blow shattered the broom handle and sent Fane to his hands and knees. It also triggered a misfire. The writhing fit this induced momentarily stunned the three humans who stood staring until the Alterran went limp. Then they descended on the helpless officer; two of them dragging him from the floor while the third worked him over with the remains of the broom handle.

After several minutes, the battered Fane was dropped to the floor where the intruders took their turns savagely kicking at him before finally leaving him for dead, a pile of cartons being pulled down to hide his presence.


	35. Break In

**Chapter Thirty-Five**

**Break-In**

In the isolation room, Amanda was reading the most recent report Roxell had downloaded into her laptop computer when she heard a noise outside in the hall. She put the unit aside, thinking it to be yet another visitor. She was right. Only this time the visitor wore a mask and was armed. A second and third followed, each wearing a mask of a different color (red, blue and black) that they used to designate one another.

The intruders dragged the body of the door guard in behind them, dumping him face down on the floor. Dr. Spencer's trained eye had already assessed the man's injuries in a glance. He had several stab wounds in his upper body, any one of which would be fatal if not treated immediately. Not that that would have mattered as the intruders went on to cut his throat. The unfortunate guard lay twitching and gurgling horribly as his life slowly ebbed away.

Amanda was on her feet before she realized, her hands to her mouth. A frightened cry escaped her when Red grabbed her by the hair and pressed an old style handgun against the back of her neck.

"Scream and you'll have a permanent hole in your pretty little head," he snarled.

The petrified physician was roughly spun around and shoved up against the wall where her hands were tied behind her. "No, please, this must be a mistake," she said shakily as the rope was coiled around her arms.

Checking a photograph, Red grunted. "No mistake."

A frightened whimper escaped the terrified woman as a gag was thrust into her mouth. Then a black hood was pulled over her head and tied into place. When her assailants were satisfied she could not escape, they unceremoniously dragged her into the hallway and toward the back of the house.

"Don't look like nobody's up yet," Amanda heard Blue say in a disappointed tone.

"Too early," Black snorted.

"Too bad. I was hopin' to take out a few more of them stiffs before we left."

The image of the dying guard they had left in her room made Amanda shudder. Then her captors started to laugh and she felt sick.

It was at this exact moment that Commander Tolan arrived. He had been planning to set up a security site, just as Bowen mentioned, and was irritated when informed Starbridge still had a transmat operating on an open frequency. A blatant violation of Security Alert Two. _What was Fane playing at? Surely he'd had enough time to get the house in order._

The Commander was composing a lengthy dressing down of his Lieutenant as he stepped into the transmat on the ship. A speech that was quickly forgotten the moment he materialized in the receiving bay, the room around him a shambles. It took only a moment for Tolan to find the critically injured Lieutenant Fane buried beneath the mountain of boxes. He was in the process of throwing cartons out of the way when Constance materialized behind him.

"Tolan, what on earth—?" she said in bewilderment.

"It's Fane," came the breathless reply. "He's hurt."

The appalled Constance joined him in pulling boxes away, and then knelt beside the downed officer. "He's alive," she said in relief, "but barely breathing. Tolan, you need to get Roxell here immediately."

Despite his personal feelings, Tolan's primary duty was clear. "We need to secure the house first," he said, looking over at the officer who had just arrived on the transmat pad.

"Tolan!"

"He may not be the only casualty!" the Commander snapped. He gave her a pained look before turning to his second Lieutenant and ordering him to contact the ship to have a squad of men, and whoever had medical training, sent down immediately. Pulling the radio from Fane's belt, he called for the Starbridge security team to report in. All units reported back except one. Lieutenant Bowen came on to inform him that this was the guard on Dr. Spencer's room.

"There are intruders in the building, Lieutenant," the Commander said as he and his men made for the isolation room. "Keep the Royals and the residents within the secured areas until cleared."

Tolan found the guard's body where he had been dumped and cursed under his breath. He was about to call the other teams when his radio came to life on its own. "Commander, the security seals on the door to the access tunnels have been broken."

"I'm on my way," he acknowledged, ordering one of the men with him to stay with the downed officer.

The access tunnels were a series of subterranean corridors leading to different areas throughout the estate, one of which led to the docking bay containing Jason's shuttlecraft. It was at the entrance to this tunnel that the intruders were found.

"Stop where you are!" Tolan commanded. "You're under arrest."

Red cursed and pulled his captive further along the tunnel.

"Just leave her," Blue said coldly. "We can make a break for it. She's just slowin' us down."

"Are you nuts?" Black snapped angrily. "We don't get paid for undelivered goods."

The captive Amanda was roughly pulled to the floor where she hoped they would leave her. To her utter despair, Red lashed her to a support pole and said, "Now don't you run off on me."

"Will you come on!" Black called. "She's not goin' anywhere. Give us a hand. We can take these guys."

The three intruders had been prepared for resistance, but not a military assault. The engagement was short and swift, Tolan's Imperial Guardsmen descending with exacting precision. Realizing they were beaten, the three broke ranks and ran.

With no way of knowing the outcome, Amanda vainly struggled to free herself, becoming all the more frantic once the shooting stopped. She was discovered by Commander Tolan, who found himself strangely relieved when he saw the securely bound and struggling form. There could be no doubting she was being removed from the house against her will. He knelt down beside her, causing her to panic when he touched her. "It's alright, don't be afraid," he soothed, untying the hood and pulling it off. "It's me. Tolan."

Amanda stared at him in disbelief. Of all the people in the universe, he was the last one she thought she would ever be overjoyed to see.

"It's only me," he said again, carefully removing the gag from her mouth.

"Oh, Tolan!" Amanda exclaimed in relief. She leaned against him and started to cry. He held her awkwardly a moment, quietly reassuring her before searching his pockets for something to cut her loose.

From out of the gloom, Red silently moved in behind the Alterran officer. He would be imprisoned for life for what he had done, if not put to death. What did it matter if he killed one more soldier? Silently, he leveled his weapon.

Dr. Spencer looked up and caught her breath, alerting the Commander of the man's presence a split second before she called out a warning. "Tolan! Behind you!"

The Alterran made a rolling dive the instant Red fired. Coming up with his weapon, Tolan fired, downing the intruder with a stun blast. As he got to his feet, he gave the inert form a look of utter revulsion mixed with murderous rage. The sound of running feet made him look up sharply and turn, weapon at the ready. He relaxed visibly when he saw it to be his own men, holstering his weapon.

One of the men noticed his commanding officer holding his left arm in obvious pain. "Commander, you're hurt."

Tolan waved a hand dismissively. "I pulled my shoulder," he said tersely before ordering the unconscious Red taken into custody. He cut the shaken Amanda free, helping her to her feet before turning over to his subordinates, knowing she would be more comfortable with anyone other than himself. "Corporal, Miss Legrand needs medical attention. See to it she gets it," he ordered before leaving the area.

Had the Doctor been present, he would have been impressed again at how Tolan effortlessly took command of the situation. Once the intruders were in custody and onboard the command ship, the Commander was issuing orders left and right. Medics were dispatched. A second security sweep was made and additional men were brought down and placed on exterior watch of the house. Within half an hour, Starbridge was completely secure.

Trusting his instincts yet again, Tolan upgraded the Alert Status to Level One, which essentially sealed off the house. The main transmat was keyed to a security channel and the others were disconnected entirely. With this done, the Commander went to personally check on the well being of the manor's residents and Royal guests. He was relieved to find everyone unharmed and bursting with curiosity as to what was going on, no one having heard anything out of the ordinary until the shooting started. Upon hearing this, Tolan immediately changed his opinion concerning the prince's accommodations. It had annoyed him considerably when he originally learned them to be on the top floor. Now they seemed the safest place in the building.

The Doctor was the first to notice the dark stain growing on the officer's dark uniform. He asked, offhandedly, if he might be allowed to observe when the intruders were questioned. While this was highly unusual, Tolan did not hesitate, saying yes immediately. He had learned to trust the Time Lord's instincts. He later learned to be suspicious of his motives. The moment they were in the hallway, the Doctor took him by the arm and told him in no uncertain terms that they were going to the medical wing where he could be treated.

"Doctor, this is completely unnecessary," Tolan protested. "Roxell's got enough real injuries to deal with. I'm not going to bother her with a muscle strain."

"Enough _real_ injuries?" the Doctor repeated unbelievingly. "My dear Tolan, when was the last time you saw a strained muscle bleed?"

"What?" The puzzled Alterran touched his aching shoulder and was shocked when his hand came away with blood on it. "Well I'll be…" Looking up, he said in amazement, "Doctor, I think I've been shot."


	36. Status Report

**Chapter Thirty-Six**

**Status Report**

The bullet was removed from Tolan's shoulder without difficulty, despite the fact that he allowed only a minimum amount of anesthetic and refused any painkillers after that. He was cautioned to wait at least a day before attempting to heal himself by transmuting and advised to take it easy for the next few days. Advice he promptly ignored. He went to his room only long enough to change into a clean uniform before returning to his ship.

Accompanied by the Doctor, Tolan went to the detention cells where his second Lieutenant had been interrogating the intruders in his absence. It had not taken long to find the weak link in the threesome, which turned out to be Blue. Eventually, they were able to get the whole gruesome story.

Dr. Spencer's would be abductors had been given carte blanche to inflict as much damage on the occupants of Starbridge as they liked to make her kidnapping look like a rescue, and further incriminate her. Blue did not seem to know her true identity, as he had only been told to pick up the woman in custody and deliver her to Dr. Legrand at his newest location.

"And where's that?" Tolan demanded.

"Somewheres on Elannia," Blue informed. "He's moved into an old wax museum."

"A wax museum?" the Doctor repeated in bewilderment.

"Yeah. You know, one of them Chamber of Horrors places. He's got it all fixed up nice and proper, too."

Failing to see the point of all this, Tolan threw the Doctor an irritated look before asking, "And after you'd delivered the woman, then what?"

"We'd get paid, wouldn't we?" Blue said in an annoyed tone. Apparently Amanda's condition upon arrival was to be the determining factor in their final payment, the better her condition the bigger their bonus. "He was real specific 'bout how the goods—I mean, the woman, was s'posed to be delivered. Funny that, isn't it?"

The Doctor rolled his eyes, exchanging a long-suffering look with the Commander, who patiently asked, "Why's that?"

"He was gonna kill her, wasn't he? Put her on the rack, or somethin'. Least ways, that's how it seemed to me." Pausing, Blue added, "She must be a real bad'en, eh? Seein' as how you both wanna take a whack at her."

The repulsed Time Lord had heard enough and went to the door where the equally revolted Commander joined him. "Get him, Tolan," the Doctor hissed in a quiet, angry voice. "Get him before he kills again."

"Don't worry, Doctor, I will. If it's the last thing I do," the Alterran hissed back, his voice carrying an uncharacteristic edge of hatred. He knocked on the door to have the Time Lord let out.

The Doctor was surprised when the officer did not follow. "Not coming?"

"In a while." Glancing back into the room, Tolan kept his voice low, "I want to see if I can find out how they knew Amanda was here. They don't seem to know about HH. Just her. How did they know she was here?"

"How indeed?" the Doctor muttered thoughtfully.

* * *

Upon returning to Starbridge, Tolan immediately sought out Roxell, finding her in the drawing room with Constance. He asked for a status report on the day's casualties and was rewarded with a brief reprimand from the Healer, who was none too pleased that he had ignored her staff's solid medical advice and continued working anyway. The Commander gave her a dark look and repeated his request.

Roxell complied, informing him that two of his men had been treated for minor injuries, his own wound having been the most serious injury to come out of the shoot out. As for the time before, however, that was another story. The Royal Guardsman from Amanda's room had died before anyone could get to him and his body had already been returned to his unit.

After a brief silence, Tolan asked, "And Fane?"

Roxell sighed heavily. Lieutenant Fane's condition was extremely critical. Notwithstanding the misfire, the savage beating he had endured had left him with broken, shattered, and crushed bones, among which were a broken jaw and fractured skull. He also had internal injuries, as well as multiple gashes, abrasions and contusions.

"He's lucky you found him when you did," Roxell remarked soberly. "If he didn't die from shock, he probably would've choked on his own blood." She went on to remark that, in a way, Fane had also helped himself, since his having disconnected the transmats had stranded Healer Turraan, one of the most respected trauma surgeons on Tel-Shye.

By this time the Commander was numbly staring into space, and caused the Healer to repeat her observation that he, too, was suffering from shock and needed to rest. "I'll rest later," he said tersely before asking, "What are his chances, Roxell? Realistically?"

Roxell had a flash of dèjá vú recalling the same question coming from the Doctor. She knew, as with the Time Lord, Tolan would take nothing less than a straight answer, which is what he got. "Realistically, Commander, his chances are virtually nonexistent. I couldn't give him the standard treatment for misfire. He never would've handled the shock to his system it needs in order to work. He's already on full life support as it is."

"Brain damage?"

"Possible. But I won't know until the treatment for the misfire is complete. It's the old fashioned method, and when used in conjunction with an energy bed it slows brain activity considerably."

"When can I see him?"

Roxell's temper flared. "For pity sake, Tolan, he's in a coma! Not everyone's as obsessed with duty as you—"

"I'm not asking as his commanding officer!" Tolan snapped angrily. "I'm asking as his—" Cutting himself off, he threw a quick glance in Constance's direction before saying quietly, "I just want to see him. Okay?"

The Healer nodded and quickly apologized for having overlooked the fact that the officers might also be friends. "He's in the critical care unit. You can see him now, if you like."

The Commander nodded. "And Amanda. Where's she?"

"In my office with Turlough. Sleeping, I hope. She was in shock, too, so I gave her a sedative."

"But otherwise she's unharmed?"

"Yes."

Tolan was thankful for a least one piece of good news and sat thoughtfully a moment, holding his aching arm. Could this mess possibly get any worse? Rising to his feet, he headed for the door.

"What about Fane's family?" Roxell called. "They need to be notified of his condition."

Tolan stiffened visibly, exchanging a long, meaningful look with Constance before turning to the Healer. "According to his file," he said slowly, "Fane has no family, except for HH, who happens to be his guardian. And I doubt you want to trouble him with this."

"He must have somebody," Roxell insisted.

"Perhaps, but we're still under a security blackout," Tolan said evasively. Turning, he added, "Anyway, I have to talk to Amanda."

"You take it easy on her, Tolan!" Roxell ordered. "She's still pretty shook."

"She's not the only one," the Commander replied darkly before vanishing through the door.

Roxell was incredulous. "I don't believe that man. Does he have no feelings at all? Blackout or not, somebody needs to—" To her utter astonishment, Constance burst into tears. Realizing that she too might be a friend of the injured officer, the Healer apologized again. "I just thought somebody out there might care about him."

"Oh Roxell, you don't know what you're saying," Constance moaned. Even Fane himself did not know that she and Tolan were his biological parents. He had been raised to believe his family had died on an obscure outpost. Only a handful of people knew the truth, one of them being Prince Jason, who had acted as physician during Constance's miraculous and extremely risky pregnancy.

After a long, agonizing silence, Constance told the astonished Healer the truth, swearing her to secrecy at the same time. "I realize you need to know because you're treating him," she said shakily. "But please, if this ever got out…"

"Your secret is safe with me," Roxell replied softy. "Now, why don't you go see him too?"

* * *

Tolan had gone directly to the critical care unit. He checked in with the duty nurse before crossing to the energy bed. Hesitantly he lifted the cover finding very little of the injured Fane visible, his body covered with bandages and life support equipment. The largest amount of exposed skin were the swollen fingers on his hands. Tolan took hold of one of the hands, the skin completely white, the signature sign of an energy bed radiation conversion.

"I don't know if you can hear me," he whispered, "but…I just wanted you to know, I'm very, very proud of you."

Tolan could feel himself losing control and quickly closed the cover, asking the duty nurse to notify him of any changes before hurriedly leaving the room. He had never been one to make an open display of his emotions, and this time was no exception. Tears were already coming to his eyes when he stepped from the room and he was grateful to find the hallway empty.

Tolan took refuge in an unoccupied examining room to get control of himself. When the door opened unexpectedly he looked up sharply, only to relax visibly when he saw it was Constance, the only person he had ever been able to completely open up to. "Oh, Connie," he moaned, "he's so…so…"

"I know. I know," Constance whispered, weeping herself. She took him in her arms and held him for several minutes. Even though Tolan did not want to be comforted, he found he could not resist. As everyone suspected, he was on the point of exhaustion, both physically and mentally, and finally broke down, weeping bitterly over the child he could not acknowledge openly.

Knowing there was nothing more she could do, Constance waited until the officer could pull himself together. When he did, he cursed himself for becoming so emotional on duty. This brought a sad smile to the face of the woman holding him and she touched his cheek and kissed him. "I suppose it would be useless for me to tell you to take it easy," she observed quietly. "It's bad enough your going off to fight an invasion without telling me. Now you have to go and get yourself shot."

"It's nothing, Connie. I'm fine."

"Dammit, Tolan, I love you," she snapped angrily. "I don't want to lose you both. I couldn't bear it."

Tolan smiled self-consciously and lowered his eyes. "I'm sorry. I'll try not to scare you like that again."

After a minute, Constance drew a deep breath. "Tolan, I…told Roxell about Fane—and us."

The appalled Commander looked up sharply. "What!" He was prevented from saying more by a finger to his lips. "She had to know, Tolan, she's his Healer. Anyway, she won't tell anyone. Doctor-patient confidentiality, remember."

Tolan smiled weakly. Then, to her utter astonishment, he said, "We should've told him the truth, Connie. It's not fair what we did. Not to him, and not to HH."

"Now I _know_ you're tired," she observed, kissing him again. "Now, go have your talk with Amanda. And after you're done, you'd better be in your room resting or I'll have you arrested myself."

"Where will you be?"

"I'm going to see our son."


	37. Quiet Conversation

**Chapter Thirty-Seven**

**Quiet Conversation**

Still not his usual stoic self Commander Tolan made his way to Roxell's office, checking in with the guard at the door before entering. He found Amanda curled up on the sofa where she had been dozing most of the day. The sound of the door opening woke her from her uneasy sleep and she sat up fearfully, relaxing when Tolan entered, his oddly reassuring words returning to her mind. _"It's only me."_

As Roxell had said, Turlough was also in the room, having been asked to keep the jittery Amanda company. He had spent his time working on his sketches while she slept and looked up when the Commander came in.

"Would you excuse us, please, Turlough?" the officer said firmly.

Throwing a quick glance in Dr. Spencer's direction, the young man considered a moment. The stern look he received from Tolan made his mind up for him and he quickly left the room.

The Commander took a seat opposite the apprehensive woman, watching silently as she sat up to face him. It was obvious she was trying to discern the reason his arm was in a sling, since he was not the kind of person to openly broadcast his injuries. It was also obvious she was still in shock as she pulled her blanket around herself. He wondered how best to begin and decided to simply come to the point. "Do you feel up to telling me what happened, Amanda?"

The Alterran's quiet tone actually made Dr. Spencer jump. This was not how she expected him to address her. "Amanda? I thought I was Miss Legrand to you."

The Commander's tone did not change. "Everyone still calls you that. I just thought—" Interrupting himself, he asked, "Would you rather I called you Miss Legrand?"

"Why not? You're convinced I'm part of this, aren't you?"

"Am I?" came the mild, almost amused reply.

Amanda scowled. Tolan's manner had her completely thrown. He was always so cold and authoritative, nothing like the subdued, almost kind individual who sat before her. "Are you trying to be funny? Because if you are—"

"This is no joking matter," Tolan said seriously. "An awful lot of people have been hurt because of this mess."

"Including you, right?" Amanda snorted. "Too bad you had to pull a muscle during your acrobatic heroics."

The Commander smiled briefly. "It comes with the job."

"I'm really impressed you and your men can guard me with such style."

"Not guard, _protect_," Tolan corrected. "You've been in protective custody since I left."

Amanda sat up a little more. "Protective…? Do you mean I haven't been under arrest all this time?" The Alterran shook his head, increasing her anger. "And you left me locked up anyway!" she exploded, jumping to her feet.

"I left you locked up for your own protection," Tolan replied forcefully, sounding more like his old self. "I even went so far as to put the house on Alert—"

"Fat lot of good _that_ did," the physician snorted, folding her arms and turning away. "They still managed to get in here."

Commander Tolan was stung by this remark. What did she want from him? One man was dead; two others injured, he had taken a bullet, and his own son— The image of the unrecognizable form in the energy bed brought a lump to his throat. He drew a deep breath and looked away. "Well…we tried," he said softly.

Amanda turned back, suddenly remembering the guard who had been dumped at her feet. "Oh God, Tolan, I'm so sorry," she said apologetically touching his shoulder. "I completely forgot about—" She broke off when he flinched away, a cry of pain escaping him as his free hand went to his aching arm. The physician could plainly see the truth from the way he was cradling it. "Tolan, that's no pulled muscle. You're really hurt, aren't you?"

"I'm fine," came the strained reply.

"Yeah, and I'm above suspicion," Dr. Spencer countered. "What happened?"

"That's what I came to ask you," Tolan replied evasively. He told her of the incident in the receiving bay involving Fane that preceded the attack on her door guard.

Amanda was appalled. In spite of her arrest and confinement, her friendship with Fane had not suffered. In fact, it had actually grown stronger. Since the decision to arrest her had not been his, she had seen no reason to hold it against him. "Oh, Tolan, not Fane, too!" she gasped a hand going to her mouth. "He's not—?"

"No, not yet. They worked him over pretty good, though. And…" Pausing, Tolan said at last, "He's pretty bad off."

"Your men mean a lot to you, don't they?"

"More than you realize," came the reply in a faraway tone.

Suddenly Amanda was Dr. Spencer again and she scrutinized the Alterran a moment before saying, "Tolan, you shouldn't be working. You should be in bed."

"I said I'm alright, dammit!" he snarled, his tone surprising even him. He was getting very tired of everyone telling him to rest.

"Do you sound alright?" Amanda countered forcefully. "You're in shock, _Commander,_ and over tired to boot." She put her blanket over his shoulders, giving him a quelling look to stop any objections. "You're just lucky I'm not your M.O. anymore or I'd have you removed from duty and confined to bed."

Tolan's reply was interrupted when the Doctor poked his head in. "Ah! There you are, Tolan. I've been looking for you."

"Well, you've found me," the Alterran responded darkly, wrapping the soothingly warm blanket around himself.

Not put off by the officer's obvious ill humor, the Time Lord smiled broadly looking over at Amanda. "And how are you doing?" he asked as he took a seat at Roxell's desk.

"I've had better days," she replied caustically and then dropped back down onto the couch.

"I was about to ask,"—Tolan looked pointedly at the woman across from him—"_Amanda_, if she could tell me what happened?"

Dr. Spencer flashed an amused smile. Then she shivered as the morning's events returned to her mind. Drawing a deep breath to steady her nerves, she recounted her harrowing ordeal. Her abductors had said very little in-between the orders they snarled at her. They had expressed a desire to inflict more damage on the security force, but as for what they planned to do with her, she had no idea.

"They didn't say anything?" the Doctor asked.

Amanda shook her head. "One of them said something about not getting paid for undelivered goods. Something like that." She gave an apologetic smile. "That probably doesn't help much. I was pretty scared at the time."

Tolan did not reply directly, nodding his understanding. He had been uncharacteristically silent the whole time, allowing the Doctor to do all the questioning.

Amanda threw a puzzled look in the Commander's direction and then looked over at the Doctor. "Does this mean I'm not under arrest?"

To her surprise, Tolan gave a tired laugh. "No, you are not under arrest. You're under protective custody, along with everyone else in Starbridge."

After a brief pause, the Doctor said conversationally, "You know, after the house was secured, Tolan asked a very interesting question. How did they know you were here?"

Glaring at the officer, Amanda said icily, "He didn't ask me that."

"Would you've been able to give me an answer if I had?" the Alterran asked reasonably.

The Time Lord grinned. He was suddenly in an exceptionally cheerful mood, which was strangely out of place in the somber atmosphere of the office. "I've a theory about that," he said happily, pulling out an object Dr. Spencer recognized instantly. "That's my scanner!"

"It is indeed."

The Doctor began dismantling the little unit before the aghast physician's eyes. "Doctor, what're you doing?" she protested. "Those things cost a fortune, and I can't afford another one now that I don't have a job anymore."

Ignoring her objections, the Time Lord said, "Amanda, you're a doctor. What's the one thing you keep with you at all times? Even when you change jobs?"

"My scanner, of course. You already know that. And it's no good to me broken!"

"Ah, that brings up another point. Have you ever had it repaired?"

Amanda looked over to the equally baffled Tolan before replying, "No, I've only had to reprogram it from time to time, or update the memory."

The Doctor let out a small cry of triumph when the back of the unit finally came off. "I think you should've had it looked at." He held up the instrument to reveal a pulsing light inside. "It appears your scanner's been bugged."


	38. Reinstatement

**Chapter Thirty-Eight**

**Reinstatement**

Tolan was instantly on his feet, examining the device with a magnifying glass. "That's not a bug, Doctor. It's a homing device." He handed the glass to the Doctor, who scrutinized the inside of the scanner and nodded his agreement.

"This is very intricate work," the impressed Time Lord observed. "Not the usual hack job, wouldn't you say, Commander?"

Tolan nodded, turning to the appalled Dr. Spencer. "That would've taken quite a while to install, too. Who would've had the time to do it?"

"No one."

"You've never loaned it to anyone?"

"No. I never let it out of my sight. I've got some very specialized programs in it that could identify me. This is the first time it's been out of my possession since—" Catching her breath, Amanda's eyes grew wide as a horrifying thought struck her. Then she felt herself becoming very angry. "That bastard!" she hissed, snatching her prized possession from the Doctor. Realizing she was about to hurl it across the room, Tolan grabbed the unit with his free hand just as she was about to let it fly. "Amanda, what are you doing?"

"Curtis gave me that scanner," she exploded, her cheeks flushed with rage. "Don't you see? He's known where I was all along. He was just biding his time before he—" She broke off, a frightened look passing across her face. "I was going to say before he came to get me, but considering all that's happened, I rather think he was going to have me killed."

The Doctor and Tolan exchanged a knowing look. She would never learn from them the fate that awaited her had her abduction succeeded. The Commander returned his attention to the pulsing beacon, looking up sharply when Amanda said, "Tolan, he can still find me with—"

"You don't have to smash it to pieces to deactivate the device," he said mildly. "I can easily have that done for you. I can even have it removed if you like, but that'll take—"

"Why are you being so nice to me?" Amanda demanded suddenly.

Tolan closed his eyes and sighed heavily, causing the Doctor to intercede. "Good Lord, Amanda, can't you see he's trying to apologize?"

Dr. Spencer gave the Commander a searching look. "Are you?"

"Yes," came the calm reply. "I may do my job well, but that doesn't mean I always like what I have to do. It wasn't my decision to have you arrested. But it was my decision not to have it as total isolation." Drawing a deep breath, he asked, "Am I forgiven?"

Seeing how difficult this admission had been, Amanda said, "Alright, I'll accept that. So where does that leave me, if I'm no longer under arrest?"

Drawing himself to his full height, Tolan announced, "You are the Argonauts' Chief Medical Officer. And I think it's high time you went to see your patient." The reaction he got was not the one he expected.

"He's not my patient anymore," came the downcast reply.

"Rubbish," the Doctor said in a slightly irritated tone. "Why do you think Roxell's been bringing you all those updates?"

"Professional courtesy," Dr. Spencer countered firmly. Her tone changed dramatically when she admitted, "Doctor, I don't know nearly enough about Alterrans. I thought I did until I found out about—What's it called? Transmuting? There's no mention of it in any of the texts on Aegis. And believe me, I read them all."

Tolan gave a small, knowing smile. "No, there wouldn't be. It's not the sort of thing one broadcasts to outsiders."

"Outsiders?" Amanda repeated, her tone filled with contempt.

"He means humanoid lifeforms, like ourselves," the Doctor said quickly.

"What do you mean like ourselves? They're just like…" Her voice trailed off when she saw the Commander shaking his head. "Not even close," he said vaguely.

"My Lord, what else are you hiding?" she gasped.

The Doctor interceded yet again. "Amanda, if you only understand one thing about Alterrans, understand this. They have a predisposition towards concealment that goes back millennia. It's a deception, yes, but with no malice intended."

Dr. Spencer considered. Suddenly Jason's deceptive behavior of four years ago made perfect sense. A predisposition towards concealment. But concealing what? Before she could press further, the Doctor was leading the way out the door saying something about checking in with Roxell before going up to Jason's room.

* * *

Roxell found Amanda's misgivings about being brought in to treat Prince Jason amusing to say the least. She openly admitted the Medical Officer's surgical skills outmatched her own, it being her considered opinion that this was the only reason Jason had survived his surgery at all.

The real puzzle was the prince's post surgical recovery. Amanda learned of Muriel's intervention, as well as Jason's telepathic connection with Shadra, which, like the rest of him, did not seem to be working. Roxell reiterated her feelings that he may have suffered a stroke, but as yet could find no evidence of one.

"I'm still running tests," the Healer informed, "but the results aren't in yet. We'll know something definite then."

Seeing a strange look come to Dr. Spencer's face the Doctor said, "You have another theory, Amanda?"

Looking up sharply, she gave a brief smile. "Perhaps," she said evasively. "He hasn't spoken yet?"

"No," Roxell sighed heavily. "He just sits there and looks at you with those enormous blue eyes of his."

"And you're sure it's not due to his coma?"

"Considering he had no head injury, I'm ninety-nine percent sure."

"And he _is_ fully conscious?"

"Oh, yes. Since yesterday."

The Doctor observed thoughtfully, "It's almost as if he's having trouble clearing his mind."

"He mentioned something like that in the Zero Room," Amanda said quietly. "Is it really that difficult?"

"It shouldn't be. But he's been through a lot. You can't expect him to deal with everything overnight."

Considering all she had to deal with herself, Amanda could sympathize. She also understood a great deal more about what Jason might still be going through than anyone else. "Perhaps he already has and—" Interrupting herself, she said, "No. I'm not going to start theorizing now. I need to examine him first." Her hand went automatically to her pocket and she cursed under her breath, having already forgotten that the Commander had taken her scanner to have the homing device deactivated. She borrowed one from Roxell before following the Doctor to Jason's room.

* * *

Constance came out of Jason's room just as Amanda got to door. The startled physician took a step back in alarm, not having expected to find her employer in the house. Or was she her former employer? "Constance, I—" she began hesitantly.

Holding up a hand, Miss Sorenson said, "Please, don't let me detain you. You see your patient first. We can talk about your secret identity later." Exchanging a knowing look with the Doctor, Constance continued down the hall.

A disconcerted Amanda watched her go. "She's as hard to read as Tolan sometimes," she muttered, turning to the Doctor.

"That's not surprising. She's Alterran, too," he informed.

Dr. Spencer blinked. "Are they all so stoic?"

The Time Lord could not help himself and laughed. "For the most part."

Shaking her head, she observed, "It's a wonder they want him back. Jason's so unlike that."

The Doctor smiled knowingly. This was indeed true. His friend's openly emotional, sometimes volatile un-Alterran nature was often what drew others to him. The true irony was that the rigid, unemotional side of his race was the one thing Jason had always yearned for, while many of his own people envied him his passion and spontaneity.

The Doctor led the way into the room. Jason was sitting up in bed with his eyes closed. He was listening as Shadra read all the letters of support he had received via computer. When the door opened, the princess looked up, smiling when the Doctor entered. Amanda peeked around the door, acknowledging the unspoken greeting. Shadra stopped reading causing Jason to open his eyes. Amanda quickly ducked out of sight when he followed his wife's gaze across the room.

"Doctor, I don't want him to know I'm here," Amanda whispered as she opened Roxell's scanner, which turned out to be a great deal more sophisticated than her own.

The Time Lord nodded, saying to Shadra, "Don't let me interrupt." Although puzzled, the princess went on reading. The Doctor smiled benignly, asking under his breath, "Well, are you getting anything?"

"Well, he's definitely conscious," the hidden physician observed softly as she scowled at the long-range reading of Jason's vital signs. Fine-tuning the readings, she could see he also had something else. Something that confirmed her theory that his immobility had a specific physical cause. A cause only she knew anything about.


	39. Residual Blocks

**Chapter Thirty-Nine**

**Residual Blocks**

Dr. Spencer came out from behind the door to be greeted by Jason's wide, surprised eyes. He wanted desperately to warn her, but try as he might he could not utter a sound, his vocal cords being as paralyzed as the rest of him.

"Andy?" Shadra said suddenly, startling the Medical Officer. "_You're_ Andy?"

"Yes. How did you know? Jason's the first one in years to—" Catching her breath, Amanda turned sharply to the prince. "My Lord, you really _can_ hear him, can't you?"

"Not as well as I'd like," Shadra admitted. "Mostly I get bits and pieces. He said, 'Andy, he knows.' I don't know what it means."

"I do…" Andy replied, staring in amazement at the silent prince who was looking pleadingly back at her. With a smile, she squeezed his hand. "We know, Jason, it's alright. Tolan's taken care of everything."

Swallowing hard, Jason closed his eyes and braced himself. Whenever he tried this hard to communicate, his body would reward him by convulsing violently for several seconds. This time was no exception. The seizure came and went, leaving him drained and afraid. _What's happening to me?_ he wondered fearfully. He opened his eyes to see Dr. Spencer running the scanner over him, a serious look on her face. She held the unit to one side of his head, marveling as the powerful instrument picked up all of his brain patterns. After about a minute, her eyes narrowed and she straightened, scrutinizing the readings.

Jason watched her intently, the Healer within him bursting with curiosity. _What do you see? Is it good or bad?_ _What's wrong with me?_

Jason did not realize he was struggling to break through with these thoughts, but Shadra did. As did Amanda, his efforts being recorded on the scanner. "No, Jason, don't—!"

It was already too late. The Alterran was convulsing again.

"Jason, please, don't try anymore," Shadra begged worriedly.

Dazed and drained, her husband gave her a tired look and sighed heavily, closing his eyes in resignation.

"Yes, you'd better listen to her, you…you…" Amanda suddenly laughed. "I've actually run out of insults. Just stop before you hurt yourself. I'll tell you what's going on, don't worry."

Startled, Jason stared up at her in amazement. She knew him better than he realized. He watched impatiently as she took Shadra and the Doctor aside.

"Shadra, just what, exactly, are you getting from him?" the Medical Officer asked.

"It's so hard," the princess moaned. "He has so much to say. And I'm just not good enough at this yet. If only I'd paid more attention!"

Throwing a quick glance across the room, the Doctor warned, "Steady on, Shadra. You're being watched. Remember that."

Shadra nodded, pulling herself together. "Sometimes I can see him in my mind, but I can't hear him. It's as if there's an invisible wall between us. I'll get stray words or thoughts from time to time. It's like…having a window open up for a second and then slam shut again."

"And then he convulses," Amanda concluded, receiving a nod in reply.

The Time Lord scowled. "A mental barrier? Is it possible?"

"Very definitely," Amanda confirmed. "Jason told me what he was going to do to try and find Curtis." Pausing, she confessed, "I'm the one who wrote the program he used to get into the computer. I had to boost the power to compensate for the absence of the microcircuits in the implants. He never told me he was going to pull the wretched things out when he was done. I could've told him it would cause a residual block."

The Doctor gave her a baffled look. "A what?"

"A residual block. It's caused when—Oh, you don't care about that," the physician said firmly. "You only care that I don't hurt him."

"Amanda!" the Doctor admonished.

"It's true! You all suspected me just because I didn't take off when we found out Curtis was behind this." Looking over in the prince's direction, Amanda gave a knowing smile. "Even Jason was suspicious of me for a while."

Shadra followed her gaze. "But you must've known…"

"That I'd be found out? Of course I did. But nobody knows the Lazarus Project better than I do. Not even Constance. I designed the prototype for the implants." Shaking her head, Amanda said darkly, "When I saw Curtis had used his own…I couldn't leave. Not knowing what I do about them."

The Doctor's eyes widened. "You wanted to be around in case anything went wrong."

"Yes. And it did, didn't it? Several times."

Shadra caught her breath, a hand going to her mouth.

"It's alright, he's in no danger now that the implants are gone," Amanda assured. "But he has to stop fighting the blocks before he really hurts himself." Suddenly she was ushering them to the door. "Now if you'll please wait outside while I talk to my patient…"

The guard outside snapped to attention as the door was opened. He then presented Amanda with her scanner that Tolan had delivered a few minutes earlier. A note attached to it stated that the homing device had been deactivated. It also stated, to the physician's amusement, that the Commander had done as his M.O. ordered and removed himself from duty for the remainder of the day.

Having felt lost without her own scanner, Dr. Spencer was grateful to have it back. She closed the door and turned back to the silent, bright-eyed Prince Jason, flashing a devilish grin at him. "I'm glad you're not waking up for the first time now," she said as she crossed the room. "You'd've had a coronary yourself, wouldn't you?"

Jason rolled his eyes. _That's an understatement and a half_. To his surprise, Amanda sat down on the bed beside him.

"Don't get any funny ideas," she said warningly. "This is serious." She held out Roxell's scanner, moving it into position so he could read the screen. "You see that? That's the signature pulse of a residual block. I'd stake my reputation on it." Receiving a quick sideways glance in reply, Amanda immediately corrected herself, "Okay, I'll stake _your_ reputation on it." Her voice was serious again. "You've got more than one of them too, see? That's probably what's causing your paralysis. And the convulsions, too, I would imagine. So stop pushing! You're only making them worse. If they get too big you'll end up losing involuntary muscle control and be back on life support again."

Jason stared at the readings, realizing, just as Amanda had, that he had triggered the blockages when he yanked the implants out following his trip into the computer. Closing his eyes, he drew a deep breath and wondered if he had inflicted permanent damage on himself. If he had blocked off the portion of his brain that produced the Epsilon waves necessary for molecular transmutation, he would be trapped within his human form for the rest of his very long life.

"Oh, stop getting melodramatic again," Amanda said sarcastically, returning Jason to reality with a jolt. She definitely knew him better than he thought. "They're not permanent, just a pain. Like you. I had a theory about them when I first designed the implants, do you remember?" Amanda paused, allowing her patient time to think. His eyes widened and then looked over to her. "I knew you would," she said in satisfaction. "If they're anything like the blocks encountered during extraction, you'll just have to wait for you're bio-electric field to normalize."

Jason's blue eyes grew in size and Dr. Spencer could just hear him exclaim, _"Wait!"_

"Yes, wait," she said firmly. "And I don't know how long, either. The more you push, the bigger the blocks get. You're only making it worse trying to communicate with Shadra."

The prince gave her a dark look, closing his eyes to signify his understanding. He looked up just in time to see an odd look cross the physician's face. _Now what?_ he wondered, thinking he was going to be very glad when he finally got his voice back.

Dr. Spencer shook her head as though trying to talk herself out of something. Noticing the inquiring eyes fixed on her, she smiled self-consciously. "You remember the rest of my theory too, don't you?" she asked, glancing back at the scanner in her hand. "Curtis obviously didn't or he'd've tried it on you when he—" Breaking off, she turned to face the puzzled Alterran. "Jason, do you trust me?" she asked unexpectedly. "I mean _really_ trust me?"

Not sure what to make of this, the prince's eyes narrowed. He would have said yes up until that moment, but the serious edge to her voice made him uncertain. Just what did she have in mind? Looking over at scanner in her hand, he saw the specialized program being displayed and suddenly remembered the theory she mentioned.

Seeing her patient's heart rate jump, Amanda thought he was on the verge of panic. "Okay, okay," she said quickly, "we don't have to try it. I was only asking."

Jason closed his eyes in frustration, wanting to scream, _"No, don't stop now!"_ at the top of his voice. At this point, he was willing to try anything to be able to move again. Opening his eyes again, he looked pleadingly over to her.

"You really want to try?"

Her patient glared at her, sighing heavily. What he would not have given just to say, "Yes."

To his relief, Amanda nodded, punching several commands into the scanner before changing positions to be directly in front of him. "Just try to relax," she instructed. She set Roxell's scanner on continuous scan mode and placed it on the bed beside him. "I don't know how this'll feel. I have to focus the power on the affected area. If you experience any pain, blink several times and I'll stop." Adjusting the settings, she added, "And if you feel any improvement, wait until I've finished, just in case the block decides to grow again. Deal?"

Not really expecting an answer, Amanda began the program that would, with any luck, remove or reduce the residual blocks within the Alterran's brain. "Let's see if we can't get your voice back, shall we?" she said under her breath, zeroing in on what she hoped was his communication center. She held her scanner firmly against his temple with one hand, the other bracing the side of his head. Her eyes remained riveted to the second scanner, watching for any signs that the program was doing its job.

Although slight, the procedure was still uncomfortable and caused Jason to wince. Not wanting the experiment to stop, he closed his eyes and tried to relax, concentrating on his breathing. Considering the excruciating pain he had endured already, he found this to be a minor annoyance in comparison and was determined to endure it to the end.


	40. Another Intruder

**Chapter Forty**

**Another Intruder**

Shadra had waited impatiently in the hall until she could bear it no longer. Ignoring the Doctor's protests, she reentered the room, her mouth dropping open when she saw what was going on inside. At that moment Jason's paralyzed vocal cords relaxed enough to allow a low groan to escape him, which only added to the illusion that he was being attacked.

"What're you doing!" Shadra exclaimed angrily. "You said you weren't out to hurt him!"

"Don't touch me!" Dr. Spencer commanded forcefully, not even bothering to turn around. "Pull this away now and the feedback could kill him."

Jason's eyes immediately snapped open. He didn't remember _that_ part. By this time Shadra was standing over him and he could see the anger in her eyes as well as the image in her mind of what she suspected was going on, which was, of course, completely erroneous. Rolling his eyes, another groan escaped him. He had been so enthusiastic about removing the blocks that he had completely forgotten about his wife waiting outside.

"Now there's loyalty for you," Shadra snapped angrily as this thought passed through her husband's mind. "I'm by your side day and night for nearly a week now and you go and forget all about me. Out of sight, out of mind, huh?"

_"I'm sorry,"_ came the telepathic reply.

"Sorry!" his wife exclaimed. "Not as sorry as—"

"Shadra, do you hear yourself?" the Doctor interrupted, not quite believing what was happening. "You're arguing with a man who hasn't spoken a word."

Suddenly realizing the importance of what was happening, the princess caught her breath. When no convulsion followed the first clear communication since Jason regained consciousness, she apologized profusely for having thought the worst of Dr. Spencer. Jason, however, received a dark look. "We'll talk about this later," she said coolly.

His curiosity piqued, the Doctor ask Amanda what she had done to bring off this apparent miracle. With a grin, she explained about her theory and the procedure, which she completed as she spoke. Switching off her scanner, she sat back. "Well, that's one. Or at least, part of one." Glancing over at the second scanner, she said firmly, "And that's all for now, too, Jason. You need to rest before we can tackle another one. I don't want you getting over tired."

To the surprise of them all, a small smile came to the prince's face, the program having worked far better than even Dr. Spencer expected.

* * *

The following morning, Amanda carried out another session but was still unable to free up the prince's voice. Not to be discouraged, she told him they would just have to try again after he had rested a few hours. Shadra was against the idea, fearing the two were pushing too hard. It was only when Roxell assured her Jason was strong enough to withstand another short treatment that she relented.

Dr. Spencer made ready to start, suggesting that the princess go downstairs to get something to eat while she worked.

"You just don't want me around while you're doing that," Shadra said sulkily.

"I don't want you getting upset," Amanda admitted. "It's obvious the procedure is uncomfortable. I don't want you picking that up from him." Being unfamiliar with the mind-bond, she assumed it only worked when the two were in the same room, something she would later learn was incorrect.

In her mind, Shadra heard Jason say, _"It hurts, Shadie. Now, please, go away so we can get it over with." _The admonition was accompanied by an intimate endearment that caused his wife to smile. "Okay," she said. "I'll go away. But only until you're done."

As soon as they were alone, Amanda began the session. "I've tried to fine tune this thing so it won't hurt so much," she informed, her eyes fixed on the second unit. Within a quarter of an hour, the session was finished and Jason's physical paralysis had faded a little more. He found he could move the fingers on his hands and his extremities ever so slightly. He still could not speak, however, the paralysis in his throat having inexplicably returned.

"I guess you'll just have to keep going through Shadra until we can find out where that one is," Amanda sighed as she got to her feet. "And remember, _don't push_. We've made considerable progress in these two days."

Amanda picked up Roxell's scanner and was about to switch it off when she saw Jason's heart rate jump dramatically. She looked up to see him staring across the room, his eyes wide in horror. Following his gaze, she saw nothing out of the ordinary and turned back. The prince was breathing heavily, abject terror written all over his face.

"Jason, what on earth's the matter? There's nothing there." Turning back to the apparently empty corner, Amanda moaned. "Oh, terrific. Now I've gone and triggered a hallucination."

Dr. Spencer had no way of knowing two things. She had not triggered a hallucination and there was most definitely something there. Or more accurately someone. The Mythryn Andrea had materialized across the room. She laughed at the Medical Officer's remarks, waving her newest weapon, a laser pistol, in the air. "She's in for a big surprise, isn't she?" she said tauntingly to the horrified Jason.

Downstairs in the dining room, the cup in Shadra's hand fell to the table as her husband's telepathic cry for help hit her like a ton of bricks. She heard him calling her name, the scene in his room flashing into her mind. "Help!" she gasped, giving voice to Jason's mental cries. "Jason's in danger," she announced. "He says it's her. The one who shot him."

Needing no further explanation, the Doctor flew from the room, calling to his companion that he find Tolan.

* * *

The Doctor burst into Jason's room to see the horrified prince staring across the room. The Mythryn had been delighting in the fact only he could see her, laughing at his helplessness and going on to taunt him by materializing in different areas around the room. Sometimes very close. Sometimes far away.

The perplexed Amanda was overjoyed when the Time Lord appeared, having been trying to calm the Alterran without success. "Oh, Doctor, thank goodness," she sighed relievedly. "I don't know what I did, but—"

The Doctor held up a hand. "It's not you." Searching the room, his gaze fell on the far corner where Andrea had reappeared. "It's her," he stated flatly.

Startled, Andrea looked over at the Doctor, realizing at the same time that he could see her. Without hesitation, she raised the weapon in her hand and fired.

Caught completely off guard, the Doctor had no chance to get out of the way and dropped like a stone. When he did not disintegrate, the Mythryn cursed. "Blast! I had it set wrong!"

Tolan arrived just in time to see the stunned Time Lord hit the floor. He could not see the intruder Turlough had told him was there and turned a questioning look at Amanda, who was already making her way across the room.

Even though Tolan could not see the Mythryn, Turlough could, thanks to his encounter with Muriel. He could tell by the fear in his eyes that Jason could see her, too.

The appalled expression on Turlough's face gave him away and Andrea raised the weapon again. He was ready for her, however, and dove out the door, much to the bewilderment of the others. "Tolan, she's still in there!" he hissed from the safety of the hallway. "And she's armed!"

"He can't see me," Andrea said gloatingly. "And you don't have the power to stop me."

"No, but I have," Shadra announced as she stepped past the others and through the door, her face clouded in rage.

Andrea's laugh of contempt quickly turned into a scream of anger when the Alterran's mind force unexpectedly slammed into her. The gun fell from her hand and she backed away, struggling to fight off the attack.

The Doctor returned to his senses at that moment and sat up slowly, only to be stunned again when he saw the mental energy being produced by the princess. She had been claiming ignorance in her telepathic ability, and now this. Realization dawned and he turned sharply to her husband, seeing an expression of intense concentration on his face. For the first time, the Time Lord saw the full power of the mind-bond in action. It was obvious that Jason was the one in control, Shadra acting as his focus and steadying force. The Mythryn would gain ground only to be pushed back.

The Doctor stared as the power struggle went on, coming out of his daze when Amanda finally shook him. "Doctor, snap out of it."

"I'm alright," he insisted, getting to his feet. "No time to explain." Turning his attention to the cornered Andrea, the Time Lord said firmly, "If your purpose here is to make Jason your tragic hero, you're going to be disappointed. He never sent the signal to stop the invasion."

"Yes, he did!" the Mythryn snarled angrily, still fighting against the Alterrans' joint mental energy. "The fleet was completely destroyed. I saw it."

"Perhaps. But Jason isn't the one who transmitted the program. You shot him before he had the chance."

The shock of this revelation caused the Mythryn to lose her concentration and she was thrust back several metres before regaining control. At the same time, the Doctor asked Shadra to stop her attack, stating that she need not wear herself out. The meaningful look he threw in Jason's direction told her all she needed to know and she did as he asked.

"Muriel created the memory link that allowed me to see what really happened," the Doctor informed devastatingly.

"That's impossible for anyone but a Time Lord!" the Mythryn countered forcefully.

The Doctor responded by turning the full force of his mental energy on the unsuspecting Mythryn. It hit her like a wall of heat and she let out a shriek of terror just a Muriel had when he fought her off. Only this time, he left no means of escape, pinning her helplessly back against the wall.

"Surprise, surprise," Muriel said as she appeared. "The Doctor _is_ a Time Lord." She threw a look at the others that would allow them to see her.

Tolan caught his breath, his hand automatically reaching for his weapon.

"No, it's alright," Turlough said quickly, taking hold of the officer's arm. "She's a friend."

The Doctor smiled approvingly but did not take his eyes from the captive Mythryn. "Muriel, you have a means of restraining her, I trust?"

"Yes." Muriel moved to her struggling sister, only to shrink back fearfully when she was within an arm's length of her.

Seeing this, the Doctor assured her she would be unharmed should she draw nearer. "I'm only concentrating on her," he said gently, not taking his eyes from the protesting Andrea.

Muriel gave him a weak smile before moving closer. She held out a small energy unit and activated it. Andrea gave a scream of frustration as she was engulfed in a glowing ball of energy that promptly vanished. Muriel informed that it was transporting her back to the Mythryn home world.


	41. Up And Around?

**Chapter Forty-One**

**Up And Around…?**

With this immediate crisis past, Doctor relaxed, a small sigh escaping him. A self-conscious smile came to his face as he turned back to the others, slightly embarrassed by his open display of power.

Muriel went to Jason's bedside and looked deep into his eyes. "You've come a long way since I saw you last, PJ," she said sweetly, cupping his face in her hands.

Only Shadra heard his telepathic reply. _"A long way! Muriel, I'm supposed to be dead!"_

The Mythryn gave an amused smile. "No. You're much too tough to die."

_"Especially when you help me the way you did."_

Muriel's eyes narrowed. "I can still help a little. But you'll have to give yourself time to heal completely."

Jason closed his eyes, a resigned sigh escaping him. How many times in the last few weeks had he been told this very same thing? Suddenly he heard Muriel's voice within his mind. _"Your arm isn't the only thing that's been broken, Jason. Give your mind a chance to heal, too."_

Startled, the prince looked up at the smiling Mythryn. Before he could think of a suitable reply, he realized the tight feeling in his throat was gone, the rest of his paralysis fading. Then he found he could move his head without major effort, and his hands and arms slightly. With a weak smile, he said softly, "Thank-you. I'll remember. Time."

Muriel smiled affectionately before standing aside. Shadra was immediately in her place, a small cry of joy escaping her when her husband smiled and spoke her name. Taking his hand, she kissed his palm and sat down beside him. With visible effort, Jason did what he had been aching to do since he came out of his coma. He put his arms around his wife.

"That was fast," the Doctor remarked, looking over at Muriel in amazement. "What did you do?"

"I removed the blocks that were caused or made worse by my energy transfer," she replied. "The ones he produced himself will have to heal on their own."

Amanda was appalled. "Why don't you just remove them all?" she demanded.

"She's not allowed," the Doctor informed. Holding up his hands, he said, "It's all very complicated. I'll explain later."

"Doctor, I must return to my people," Muriel said firmly. She threw a meaningful glance in the corner where the captive Andrea had been. "As soon as I have news for you, I'll be back." With that, she promptly vanished.

Jason closed his eyes and sighed heavily, leaning back in bed and groaning in pain. He opened his eyes to see Dr. Spencer standing over him, scanner in hand. After days of wishing he had his voice back, he suddenly could think of nothing to say.

Not so Amanda. "How do you feel?"

The prince gave her an annoyed look. "Like I've been…shot," he whispered irritably. "Several times."

"Oh, good. I'd hate to think I operated on you for nothing," Amanda quipped. Her tone was suddenly firm, "Seriously, Jason, how do you feel?"

"Seriously?" The prince thought a moment before confessing, "Tired. Very, very tired."

"Yes, you've had a busy day." Dr. Spencer crossed to the house phone, conferring with Roxell for several minutes before returning to the bedside. Holding up a hypodermic, she said in a no nonsense tone, "This is a painkiller. And you are going to get it, whether you want it or not, so don't even try to argue." So saying, she injected the amused Alterran with the very potent drug, ordering him to get some sleep, which was really quite unnecessary, Jason thought, since he was already exhausted.

Looking over at his wife, the prince smiled weakly, squeezing her hand. Perhaps _now_ he would be alright.

* * *

The following morning saw Jason leaving his bed for the first time since his arrival at Starbridge. Roxell expected the move to be difficult and was relieved at the ease with which it was accomplished. Jason gritted his teeth as he was lifted from bed and placed in a wheelchair, tolerating the pain from his wounds so he could leave the confines of his bed. He wanted to be taken out onto the porch, even though he knew this would put him at odds with Commander Tolan, who still had the house on Security Alert. Instead, he found himself at odds with Healer Roxell, who said firmly and emphatically, "No." In the end, he compromised and sat in front of the sliding glass door, taking in the view from the safety of the house.

"Tolan, how long will—?" Jason broke off and sighed. The jostling of the move had tired him more than he realized and just the simple act of speaking was an effort.

Shadra gave him a sympathetic smile, asking the question for him. "How long will the house stay on Alert?"

"Until I hear from my agents, Highness," Tolan replied mysteriously. The radio at his belt suddenly crackled, and Lieutenant Bowen's urgent voice came over, saying, "Commander, you have a priority message coming in on the security channel."

"This may be them now," Tolan remarked and acknowledged the message. He strode across the room, getting as far as the door before stopping and turning back. "There is one thing I'd like to know, my Lord," he said slowly.

Jason was intrigued. "Yes?"

"The message you sent from the satellites. It was on my private security frequency."

"Yes…" The prince was at a loss as to where this was leading.

"How did you know it? I changed frequencies when I formed the Argonauts."

Jason raised an eyebrow, having thought Constance to be the one who founded the group. He did not remark on this, however, chuckling in amusement instead. Throwing Shadra a quick glance, she smiled and passed on the reply. Apparently the Commander had used his private frequency to link the computer at Legrand's Research Center to the one at the Foundation. At the time, Jason had been surprised to see it, since he thought he knew everyone's sign-ons. He later realized, if he did not know the frequency, neither would the invaders, since they were relying on his own knowledge. As was he. He knew the Commander would not be unable to stay away from the Outer Boundary, his loyalty to the Empire outweighing his loyalty to one "Royal." It was this sense of duty the prince was banking on, and was the sole reason he aimed the transmission specifically at Tolan.

The logic involved in this stunned the Commander, who even now had been uncertain of the Crown Prince's mental stability. There could be no doubting Jason was, and always had been, in full possession of his faculties. "Thank you, my Lord. And, might I add, brilliant," Tolan said admiringly. With a curt bow, he turned and left.

A minute later Amanda arrived, scanner in hand. "Where's Tolan off to in such a hurry?" she asked, trying not to sound as apprehensive as she felt.

"Security call," Jason said simply.

Amanda smiled briefly and then began checking him over. She scowled at the readings on the screen, asking, "How do you feel this morning?"

Her patient gave her a dark look. Notwithstanding the fact that he was still recovering from his kidnapping, he had no energy, a broken arm, the remnants of several residual blocks and more than half a dozen bullet wounds. How did she expect him to feel? He chose to ignore the question entirely. "They told me about the break-in, Andy," he said softly, his voice still lacking its usual power. "How do _you_ feel?"

Startled, Amanda looked up sharply, seeing the searching look on his face. "I'm fine," she said unconvincingly.

"Talk to me, Andy," Jason said in as firm a tone as he could manage. "My brain does work."

"Jason, I'm fine." Amanda then told him how Tolan had even given up his own room for her, moving into the adjoining one so as to be close at hand. "He told me, if I got scared for any reason during the night, I should call him. He'd come no matter what time it was." Shaking her head at the irony, she said, "Up until then, I was afraid of _him._ Now I'm just afraid. I'm sure I'll get over it."

"It's no fun, is it?" Jason observed softly.

Seeing the knowing look on his face, Amanda finally understood his intense reaction when he saw her clearly for the first time. It was more than anger. It was betrayal, which is just how she would have felt in his place. She could also appreciate a part of what he must have endured during his captivity, the fear and utter helplessness. "No," she said at last, "it's no fun."

After a long, awkward silence, Jason asked to see Lieutenant Fane, a request that startled Dr. Spencer. "I'm not so sure that's such a good idea. I know he's your ward, but…"

"Amanda, you don't understand," Shadra broke in. "It's not just an honorary thing, Jason practically raised Fane. He's known him since he was a child."

Jason could not help himself and laughed. "A bit longer than that, Shadie. I delivered him."

Amanda looked over at the equally astonished princess, who scolded, "Jason, you never told me that!"

"You never asked," came the evasive reply. "You only asked another _related_ question."

Turning to Amanda, Jason said seriously, "I couldn't love him more if he were my own, and now he might die because of this. Because of me. I have to see him before…" He sighed and left the sentence unfinished.

"No, Jason," Amanda said, "it's my fault he got hurt."

With a small smile, the prince said, "Then perhaps we both should see him."


	42. Surprise Visitors

**Chapter Forty-Two**

**Surprise Visitors**

At first Roxell was opposed to Jason visiting Fane's bedside, but in the end she found his observations illuminating. Even the most sophisticated sensing equipment could not pick up as much detailed information as he could in a single scan. He was able to suggest two, less stressful methods of bringing the officer through the post-trauma of the misfire.

"I should probably be glad you're not still practicing medicine," Roxell said as she finished taking down the prince's observations. "I'd be out of a job."

"Nonsense, Rox, you were hand picked," Jason smiled. "You'd be my partner."

The Healer smiled back, looking over her notes. "Which of the treatments to do you think he'll tolerate better, partner? The first is probably—" Roxell broke off when she realized the method she had in mind required a blood transfusion from a close relative. Looking up sharply, she gave a quick smile. "No, that won't work, will it?"

Jason's eyes narrowed and he studied her face before saying, "You know, don't you?"

"What?"

"About Fane? You know." Seeing the Healer's startled expression, Jason nodded knowingly. "His mother told you, didn't she? I can't see his father doing it."

Roxell's mouth dropped open, causing the prince to laugh. "You thought he was mine until then, didn't you? I know the rumors that go along with my reputation. Why do you think I made such an open display of raising him?"

With a self-conscious smile, Roxell acknowledged that she did indeed know truth of the Lieutenant's lineage.

"In that case, I'd say Tolan is your best donor. But you'll have to give him a cover story so no one will suspect—" Jason broke off when he saw an odd expression come to Roxell's face. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

"You're something else, Healer Jason Krystovan, do you know that?" she said admiringly.

"No. I'm nothing special," Jason said softly. "That young man in the energy bed is the real hero. I couldn't be prouder of him even if he _were_ my own."

At that moment Amanda entered, ending the confidential exchange. Jason leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes, sighing heavily. Dr. Spencer threw a conspiratorial look in Roxell's direction before wheeling the visibly fatigued prince out of the office. "That's enough for one day," she stated flatly. "End of consultation. Back to bed for you."

Jason found he was almost relieved to hear this but felt he should put on a show of resistance anyway. "I don't suppose it'd do me any good to argue, would it?" he asked, already knowing the answer would be no.

To their mutual surprise, King Aaron met them in front of the elevator. He expressed his delight at finding his son looking so much better than on his previous visit.

"I was in a coma, Father," Jason said icily. "I don't think I could've looked much worse without being dead." He suddenly wondered why Shadra had not been waiting for him and made a mental sweep of the house. Just as the elevator reached the top floor, he discovered her location and the reason for her absence. He caught his breath and sat bolt upright, his eyes wide.

"What's wrong?" Dr. Spencer asked worriedly.

"The Lord Emperor is here!" came the startling reply. Jason gave his father an amazed and questioning look.

"What!" Amanda was appalled. After all, this was the man who had ordered her arrest.

"I should know better than to try and surprise you when Shadra's around," the king moaned, pushing open the ornate ironwork door. He moved aside to allow the wheelchair to pass. "He's come to see the Doctor, apparently, but I'm sure he'll be up to see you too, once you've rested."

Jason picked up the all too familiar edge to his father's voice and said disapprovingly, "You haven't been arguing with the Doctor again, I hope." Receiving no reply, he looked into the king's stern face. "You have, haven't you?"

The monarch gave him an equally disapproving look. "Not now, Jason."

Amanda entered Jason's room and reached for the house phone, intending to call for assistance in getting her patient to bed. Aaron immediately stopped her. To her amazement, he threw back the bedclothes and effortlessly lifted his son from the chair, gently lowering him into bed.

Jason settled back with a groan. "You haven't tucked me in in a long time," he observed dryly as the blankets were carefully pulled over him.

"I haven't done a lot of things in a long time," his father replied softly. "But worrying about you isn't one of them. What were you thinking? Wearing yourself out your first day out of bed," he then scolded.

"Father, I—"

The king shushed him. "I said not now. You get some rest. We can talk later." With a grin, he added, "I understand that's a novelty these days."

Jason gave him a sour look, holding up a hand when Amanda came over with a painkiller. "No more drugs, Andy, please," he implored. "I've had enough."

Dr. Spencer exchanged an apprehensive look with Aaron. "Are you sure?"

"Yes, I'm sure."

"Alright. But if you change your mind, you let me know."

Jason smiled weakly, and watched longingly as his father and his doctor went out onto the rooftop porch. They sat in the shade of the canopy he had built himself and he wondered what they could possibly have to talk about? Him, probably.

As he lay watching the conversation outdoors, the weary prince eventually drifted off to sleep.

* * *

In the downstairs living room, the Emperor and Shadra were also having a conversation about the convalescing prince. The Doctor and his companion entered a few moments later, the Time Lord breaking into a broad smile when he saw the Alterran monarch. He was bewildered when Quinton turned to Turlough and asked if he had something for him. The young man nodded, leaving the room and returning with his bulging portfolio.

Suddenly his companion's strange compulsion to illustrate everything made perfect sense. "Why drawings?" the Doctor asked as the monarch paged through the sketches. "And why Turlough?"

"Suggestion is easily placed in an untrained mind," the Emperor replied, going on to apologize to Turlough for having used him in such a manner. "It's pictures like these that tell me what others think I don't want to hear." He turned the pad around displaying the graphic depiction of the captive Jason as he had been when discovered in the extraction room.

Turlough was appalled, reacting as if seeing the drawing for the first time. "I didn't draw _that_, did I?" he gasped.

Before the Emperor could reply, Constance arrived to be followed almost immediately by Tolan. The monarch was surprised to see the officer alone and asked, "Where's Dr. Spencer?"

"She's taken HH—uh, His Royal Highness—upstairs with King Aaron, Majesty," the Commander replied, receiving an amused smile at his hurried correction of the prince's nickname.

"Perhaps we should wait for her."

The Imperial Officer bowed slightly. "With respect, sir, I think it best she not be here for this." He went on to explain that the agents he had sent to arrest Legrand had reported back only moments earlier, this being the reason for his delay. They had found the location that Amanda's would-be abductors had provided and searched the building. Tolan paused at this point, annoying Constance, who cried, "Well don't keep us in suspense. Was he there?"

"He was there alright," Tolan said darkly. "Murdered." He gave the Doctor a knowing look when he said, "They said his body had been compressed down to less than thirty centimetres."

Only Constance did not understand the significance of this statement and was baffled by the horrified looks it produced. "Tolan, what does it mean?"

"The Master," the Doctor replied, turning to the Emperor. "It would appear you were right all along."

Again the monarch's reply was forestalled by the arrival of another person. This time it was a breathless and excited Muriel. "There you are! Doctor, I've been looking everywhere for you. I have news—"

"What are _you_ doing here?" the Emperor demanded angrily.

Whirling around, Muriel's delighted expression dissolved into one of horror. An alarmed cry escaped her and she took refuge behind the Doctor, who was not in the least surprised by either of their reactions. "It's alright, your Majesty. Muriel's a friend," he said quickly.

"Friend!" the sovereign thundered, glaring at the cowering Mythryn. "_You?_ A friend?"

"Yes. I tried to tell you once we're not _all_ out to make trouble," Muriel replied shakily. "Prince Jason gave me the chance _you_ never would."

Emperor Quinton's face turned to stone. "I don't believe it," he said coldly. "Jason—and a Mythryn?"

The Doctor quickly intervened. "Majesty, the only reason Jason is alive today is because of Muriel's intervention."

Seeing the obvious question on the monarch's face, she said simply, "I owed him one, Quinton. He'll have to tell you why. I promised I wouldn't."

The Doctor was already wondering at the circumstances that would have caused the Emperor and Muriel's paths to cross. He was all the more intrigued when she called him by name, something no one normally dared do lest they incur his wrath.

The deafening silence that followed was broken when the Emperor inclined his head. "Then …you are welcome, Muriel."


	43. Muriel's News

**Chapter Forty-Three**

**Muriel's News**

The Mythryn came out from behind the Doctor, shaking her head. "It would be so much easier if PJ didn't have such powerful friends." This caused everyone to laugh, breaking the unbearable tension that had been building in the room.

"Alright, Muriel, what news have you brought?" the Doctor asked pointedly.

"I found out who hired Legrand," she replied proudly. Seeing he was less than enthusiastic, her smile faded. "Don't you care anymore?"

"Of course. It's just…we rather suspect we know already."

The smile returned to the Mythryn's face. "But you're not sure, are you?"

"Muriel…"

Holding up her hands, she said quickly, "Okay, okay. But you know most of it already. Do you remember the master plan Andrea mentioned?"

The Doctor and his companion exchanged a startled look, having the same thought at the same time. "Master plan!" Turlough gasped.

"She meant the _Master's_ plan," the Doctor moaned. "I'm a fool. I should've realized sooner."

"Why?" Tolan asked pointedly. "He never showed himself."

"Yes. Odd that. It's not his style to stay out of the limelight. Especially in something on this grand a scale."

Suddenly everyone was talking at once. Several theories were thrown out as to whether the Master may or may not have been at the Research Center. Had he really been involved from the start? Or had he taken over when things started to go wrong?

Muriel cleared her throat loudly to be heard over the din. "I found out a bit more, if anyone's interested?" she announced, gaining everyone's attention again. She explained that the Master had, indeed, orchestrated the kidnapping. He had handed the prince over to Legrand and stepped aside, contacting him through Andrea or via the radio link. In this way the Time Lord was able to maintain control and steer the project in the direction he wanted. As soon as the deal for the codes was closed, he had planned on taking over the Center and clearing up loose ends. Meaning, of course, killing everyone involved. The reason he had not done this was due to the fact that the deal was closed the very same day the prince was rescued.

"He wasn't happy when he found out you were one of the Argonauts, Doctor," Muriel informed.

"I'm not in the least surprised," the Doctor said aridly.

"Apparently, you were supposed to be baited into this by the Dalek threat to Alterrous."

The Doctor nodded. "We must've really annoyed him when we kept Jason an Aegis," he remarked. "Did you find out why he never came after him after the rescue?"

Muriel gave him a puzzled look. "But he did. He's the one who sent Jolene Hyde to burn him out on radioactivity."

"Did he send the android, too?" Turlough asked.

"No. Legrand did that," Muriel replied. She had learned that Legrand had continued to struggle with translating the disks even after he escaped. He learned through Andrea that Amanda was among the Argonauts and that Jolene's murder attempt had failed. It was then that he sent the android to further incriminate his daughter, employing Jolene's services to try and find the extraction key. The Master had wanted to utilize Legrand's obsession with destroying Amanda in conjunction with his fixation on Jason, but could not get the deranged scientist to cooperate

"That's why Andrea was at the Center instead of Legrand," Muriel informed sadly. "The Master had given her free reign to make him her tragic hero."

"And just where is the Master now?" Tolan wanted to know.

"He's with Legrand on Elannia."

The Commander stiffened visibly, turning pointedly to the Doctor, who met his gaze steadily. They both knew this meant the renegade Time Lord had escaped yet again.

The deafening silence that followed was broken when King Aaron and Dr. Spencer were shown in. Amanda was introduced to the Emperor, who inquired after the health of his nephew.

"He's sleeping," she replied nervously. Seeing the same, strange expression on everyone's faces, she asked hesitantly, "What's been going on down here?"

* * *

The sleeping Prince Jason had scarcely been left alone in his room when he started to dream. He saw himself walking down a seemingly endless corridor lined with display screens, each playing back one of his memories. In his hand he had a large key that fit into a slot beneath each screen. When the key was turned, the screen went blank. He was moving slowly from screen to screen, locking off each memory and ignoring the disembodied voice that was loudly demanding the key.

* * *

Downstairs, Shadra put a hand to her head as if in pain. When the others asked if she were all right, she said simply, "Jason's dreaming."

"You never mentioned being able to sense his dreams before," the Doctor remarked.

"I never did before today. He doesn't—he didn't—used to have nightmares."

The Doctor saw a worried look cross Dr. Spencer's face and asked why this disturbed her. She explained that the program she had written to allow the prince access to Legrand's computer was also supposed to purge him of the seemingly endless nightmares.

* * *

In his dream, Jason suddenly found himself in front of an enormous door that refused to open. Even the key was useless. Finally he tore it from its hinges in frustration, finding himself face to face with Andrea.

"No! You were captured!" he gasped, taking an alarmed step back. "I saw it with my own eyes!"

"My master released me," the Mythryn smiled, tapping the Master's TCE in the palm of her hand. The Alterran recognized the deadly device instantly and lifted his gaze just as the evil Time Lord appeared behind her.

* * *

Muriel suddenly cried out in anguish, her eyes wide. She looked up blindly, seeing Jason's dream as well. "He's trying to kill PJ. In the dream. He wants to kill him."

"Who does?" the Doctor demanded.

"A man. I don't know who. PJ is terrified of him."

Even though Muriel did not know the man's identity, Shadra did. "It's the Master."

The Doctor was aghast, his mouth dropping open. He was prevented from asking more as Muriel went on, "He's dream linked with Jason. I don't know how. He's trying to take control of the dream." She took hold of the Time Lord's arm. "Doctor, if he kills him there, he'll die here!"

The Emperor needed no further prompting. He placed a hand on the Great Seal and in a flash Shadra, Muriel and the Doctor were transported to the prince's room with him.


	44. Dream Link

**Chapter Forty-Four**

**Dream Link**

Trapped within his own mind, Prince Jason tossed restlessly in bed. Quinton looked intently at him a moment and then turned his steady gaze across the room. The far wall dissolved into whiteness, colors suddenly appearing as the dream was projected upon it.

The Master was grinning evilly at the horrified prince, who stood staring at him, frozen with fear. It was not until the Time Lord started to laugh that Jason came out of his stupor. "No," he breathed, shaking his head. "No. No!" He turned and fled, suddenly feeling searing pain as he was caught in the ray of the TCE. A scream was torn from his throat and he fell to the ground where his body was compressed smaller and smaller.

_In the real world, the thrashing Prince Jason went limp the instant his dream self was struck down, causing Shadra to cry out in anguish, "We're too late!"_

_"No! It's not real!" the Doctor reminded firmly. "In a dream, anything can happen. Concentrate on that."_

Reality changed to unreality and Jason was shocked when he did not die. He collapsed to the floor, dazed and helpless, looking up fuzzily as Andrea came to stand over him. "Dèjá vú‚" he whispered.

"_Still_ not dead!" she snarled angrily. "What does it take to kill you?" The Mythryn raised the weapon in her hand, intending to beat him to death with it. Her arm was suddenly grabbed by the Master, who stripped the TCE from her hand. "You're a little too impetuous, my dear," he said coldly, firing the weapon pointblank.

The tiny Prince Jason watched in revulsion as the Mythryn was subjected to the same fate as himself. Only this time the compressor's effects were lethal. He looked at the lifeless form and shuddered. Suddenly a shadow fell over him and he looked up, covering his face with his arms as the Master scooped him from the floor.

"The tables are turned, my prince," the Master cooed. "Now it is I who can squeeze the life out of you."

Jason cried out in alarm as the grip on him tightened. He fought back as best he could, finally struggling just to breathe.

_In the real world, the Doctor could stand it no longer and turned to Muriel. "He's obviously gained control. How do I get in there?"_

_"Go to sleep," she replied succinctly._

_"Or into a trance," the Emperor injected firmly. "Muriel, can you set up the link?"_

_Muriel nodded. "You'll have to give him as much power as you can. That's turning into a very realistic dream."_

_Taking a seat, the Doctor said quickly, "Don't worry about me, I know it's not real. Just get me in there before the Master kills him."_

_"One thing, Doctor," Muriel said soberly. "You won't be able to gain control of the dream until you gain control of PJ."_

_The Doctor looked over at the projected image just as the Master loosened his grip on the limp Alterran. "No, that's much too easy," the evil Time Lord muttered. Turning he made his way down a long corridor and, without realizing, provided the Doctor the time he needed to enter the dream._

The image swirled, changing into a brightly lit laboratory. The miniaturized prince moaned in the Master's grasp, coming to his senses just moments before he was placed on a tabletop. Too weak to stand, Jason dropped to his hands and knees, quickly rolling to a sitting position. A large magnifying glass was moved over him and he backed away fearfully. "What do you want?" he demanded. "Surely it's obvious I'm powerless to fight you?"

The Master raised an eyebrow, looking into the glass to more clearly read his tiny captive's expressions. "Powerless, are you? Completely? You'll forgive me if I don't believe you."

The Alterran made no answer, scuttling back further when his captor reached for him.

"Now you're not going to make this difficult, are you?" the Master said mildly. "I'm not going to hurt you."

"You'll forgive me if _I_ don't believe _you_."

"Touché," the Time Lord grinned. "I could've killed you already, you know?"

"Then why didn't you? Still playing games?" Jason asked, leaning back to look at the enormous face gazing down at him. "Just what do you want from me, Master? Other than my life, of course."

"Do you know what the translation key is to your memory extracts?" came the bland inquiry.

Jason blinked. "Of course I do. And so do you. You did try to steal it from me once."

"Indeed. The data was encrypted by your scanning."

"Very probably."

"The answer was so deliciously simple, but that fool Legrand couldn't see it," the Time Lord chuckled.

Realization dawned and Jason stared up at the enormous face. "It was _you_ I heard," he gasped, a hand going to his head. "From the very beginning! And here I thought…" His eyes narrowed. "You're the one who planned all this, aren't you? Are you also Legrand's elusive financial backer?"

"Bravo," the Master grinned. "You now know more than the Doctor does. He still hasn't figured that out yet." After a long pause, he said, "Tell me, do you know where the extracts are?"

"No, thank goodness, I don't. With any luck the Doctor destroyed them when he finished with them," the prince replied.

The Master suddenly scowled and turned away.

Jason scowled as well, wondering how the Master actually fit into this whole mess and why he would go to all this trouble for a few transponder codes. Looking up, he seized the opportunity to look around the room, but for some reason he could not make out the lab, seeing only blurred shapes and colors. Was everything too big for him to focus on? Or was he dreaming? Details always looked fuzzy in his dreams. It was at that moment Jason suddenly realized he had no injuries, his body, although small, had no wounds at all. He was completely healed. When did that happen?

Apparently sensing he was losing control, the Master turned back. "Contemplating escape?" he asked sharply, startling the Alterran. "What will you change into, my prince?"

"Nothing. I can't transmute," Jason informed. "I've already tried. The compressor must've suppressed it, somehow."

"Which brings up another point. Why did the TCE not kill you?"

"I don't know. I'm just as surprised as you are."

The Master gave an evil smile. "Shall we find out?"

The next thing Jason knew he was being pulled across the table and he let out an alarmed cry. A piece of string was suddenly looped around one of his wrists. His captor picked up a pin, which to him looked more like a spear, and bore down on him with it. He covered his face with his free arm as the pin was stabbed thought the knot at the end of the loop, securing it, and him, to the table.

Suddenly realizing what was happening, the aghast Jason clawed desperately at the twine on his wrist. "No! Please, no!" he begged, hating himself at the same time. "Don't tie me down again, please. I'm perfectly willing to cooperate."

"Now wouldn't that make a nice change," the Master snorted, knocking his tiny captive onto his back with a flick of his finger. Within a few minutes, the Alterran was spread-eagled on the table and helplessly secured into place.

"I thought you weren't going to hurt me!" Jason spat contemptuously.

His captor merely laughed, placing a stack of slides on the table beside him. The prince stared at them in horrified disbelief. Was he going to dissect him? The magnifying glass was positioned over him and he swallowed hard. "This can't be happening," he said at last, closing his eyes tightly. "It's a dream. It _has_ to be a dream!"

"Then why don't you wake up?" the Master taunted. "Or better yet, why don't you dream up a rescue?"

To the relief of Jason and everyone watching in his room, the Doctor suddenly opened the door. "An excellent suggestion," he said mildly. "I've always loved a good rescue."


	45. Rescue, Part 3

**Chapter Forty-Five**

**Rescue, Part 3**

The Master growled, glaring down at his captive and then back at his rival. The room seemed to blur around them, but the Doctor remained a solid image as he strode into the room.

"It was your idea, _not_ your creation," came the cool reply. "Don't worry, I'll go. But not without Jason."

The Master snatched up a scalpel, holding it against the neck of the defenseless Alterran. "And just how would you like him, Doctor? Whole? Or in pieces?"

The Doctor stopped dead in his tracks. "What do you want?"

An evil smile came to the Master's face. How easy it was to subdue his rival when another's life was at stake. "I want the extraction disks," he stated flatly. "Give them to me, and I'll release the boy unharmed."

"You don't actually believe that, do you?" Jason said in disbelief, only to catch his breath and stiffen visibly as the blade came closer to his throat.

"Shut up, Jason," the Doctor snapped, his eyes riveted on his enemy. "So, you want the extraction disks, do you? Well, that's easily arranged."

The Master's eyes narrowed. It was not like the Doctor to give in so easily, especially in an apparent no win situation. "Don't even think about trying something foolish, Doctor," he hissed threateningly.

The Doctor smiled broadly. "I wouldn't _dream_ of it. Mind you, I can't imagine why you'd go to all this trouble for a stack of blank disks."

"What!"

"You don't think I'd just leave them lying about, do you? I erased them while Jason was recovering. You're still welcome to them, if you like."

The Master was appalled and straightened slightly. This was all the Doctor needed. He shoved his rival aside, sending him sprawling onto the floor.

The tiny and totally confused Prince Jason suddenly found himself being released from his bonds. The pins were pulled from the knots and he was gently lifted from the table. "Doctor, how did you know where to find me?" he asked, finding his voice at last.

"Never mind. I'll explain later."

"You always say that but you never do!" Jason protested.

"You'll never get him out alive, Doctor," the Master snarled as he dragged himself from the floor.

"I might be inclined to agree, had you not just lost control of the link." So saying, the Doctor walked straight through the wall and into a corridor of his own devising.

With the dream now firmly under the Doctor's control, the prince's mind started to clear. He was suddenly aware of the surrealistic nature of his surroundings and the discontinuity of the happenings around him. "Link?" he said dazedly. "What link?"

"A dream link," the Doctor replied, giving him a quick run down of the situation. He turned a corner and stopped. At the end of the short hallway was a door marked with a large _EXIT_ sign. Suddenly the corridor pulled away, and the Doctor watched calmly as door upon door appeared along its length.

Jason had an entirely different reaction. Still cradled in the Time Lord's hands, he let out a whimper, clinging to his friend's coat and almost hiding behind the lapel.

"These are your fears, Jason," the Doctor said mildly. "You must clear them from your mind or you'll never be free of them."

"I can't!" came the terrified reply. "I don't… I don't have the strength."

"I'll help you," the Doctor said in the same calm tone. "Just remember what I taught you. Legrand implanted these fears. Together, we can uproot them."

Not waiting for a reply, the Doctor started down the hall. As they approached a door, it would spring open, horrific groans and noises issuing forth. The Doctor waited until Jason found the courage to look at it and then added his own steady gaze to his friend's, supplying the extra strength the boy so desperately needed. The instant he did so, the door closed and vanished. It soon became apparent that in addition to helping his friend face his fears, the Doctor was returning stability to his mental processes. By the time they reached the end of the corridor, the Alterran's mind was completely clear.

Looking at the sign on the door, the Doctor announced, "It's time to wake up."

"Doctor, I _can't_ be asleep," Jason objected, going on to prove his mind was clear when he said, "A dream link can only be accomplished at close range. That would mean the Master's somewhere on the estate."

The Doctor blinked. "That's right!" He turned to the near wall and a view screen appeared from nowhere. "Let's see exactly where he is, then, shall we?" With the turn of a dial, the Master and his surroundings were revealed.

"At last the puppet master appears," the Doctor said in a satisfied tone, causing his rival to jump. "And on the Krystovan Estate, too. Not the wisest of places to be with the Lord Emperor so close at hand."

"I shan't be here long, Doctor. You needn't concern yourself." The Master's eyes narrowed, an evil smile parting his lips. "Good-bye, my prince. Pleasant dreams." So saying, he and the room around him vanished.

Suddenly the hallway darkened, the images blurring and melting together. "Doctor!" Jason cried fearfully, still clinging to his friend's coat. "What's happening?"

The Doctor glanced over at the exit, seeing it slowly opening. "Nothing spectacular," he said with a small smile. "You're waking up. Just let it happen."

The tiny Alterran suddenly felt himself falling through space. The Doctor had dropped him!

* * *

In the real world, Jason drew a sharp breath, his eyes snapping open. He tried to sit up, only to fall back and groan, the pain from his wounds effectively confirming his return to reality.

The Doctor's return was far less dramatic. He opened his eyes and slowly got to his feet, a satisfied smile coming to his face as he crossed to the Alterran's bedside. Jason looked at him in bewilderment. "Doctor, it did...? I mean, I wasn't...?"

"Yes, it did happen," the Time Lord said firmly. "And, no, you were not hallucinating. You've locked all that away for good." He held out a hand and was surprised when Jason took it, apparently oblivious to the jolt his power time aura would give him.

Closing his eyes, the prince shivered. "Pretty pathetic, huh? Now you're rescuing me from my dreams."

"Well, what are friend's for?" the Doctor replied breezily. He turned to look back at Muriel, only to find himself face to face with King Aaron. Startled, he took an automatic step back, throwing a questioning glance at the wall where the dream had been projected.

"Yes, I saw," the king confirmed. He had followed the group upstairs and watched the entire episode in trepidation. "Whatever differences we may've had in the past," he said seriously, "or will have in the future, I want you to know right now, Doctor, I'll never forget what you've done for my son today. You have my deepest and heart felt thanks."

The Time Lord's mouth dropped open, and he found himself at a loss for words. When Aaron arrived at Starbridge, he had practically accused the Doctor of being the reason Jason nearly got himself killed when he returned to the Research Center. The last thing the Doctor expected was to hear an expression of gratitude.

Aaron sat down beside his trembling son and was surprised when he sat up and hugged him tightly. "Bad dream, Jaycie?" he asked mildly.

Jason nodded, saying nothing.

"Want to tell me about it?" his father then asked.

Jason shook his head vigorously, the terror from his dream encounter with the Master still clinging to him like death itself. Suddenly, finally, the brave front he had been trying to maintain for so long crumbled into dust and he started to cry. Then he found he could not stop crying. Just as in his dream, he was powerless to fight.

Amanda had also followed the others upstairs and watched Jason's breakdown in a mixture of joy and sorrow, a stray tear rolling down her face. He had stopped fighting, _finally_, she thought gratefully. Now perhaps the real healing could begin.


	46. Special Requests

**Chapter Forty-Six**

**Special Request**

Several hours after the prince's traumatic upheaval, Starbridge had more or less returned to normal. Jason, however, had not, nor was he sure he ever would again. Once he felt up to seeing visitors, he asked to see the Lord Emperor.

"Are you feeling any better?" the monarch asked concernedly as he entered.

"Yeah, I guess," came the terse reply. Suddenly realizing what he had just said, and to whom, Jason said quickly, "I'm sorry, my Lord. That came out wrong. Please forgive me. I'm still not myself. I probably won't be for quite a while."

"Perhaps I can fix that."

The prince felt his body starting to tingle and immediately threw up his hands. "No! Please, don't!"

"Jason, it's alright—"

"No, it's not," Jason replied, his voice already noticeably stronger from the sudden infusion of energy. "Please, I implore you. Don't do this."

"My dear Nephew, I'm only trying to—"

"I know," the prince cut in sharply. "I understand, really, I do. It's just…I need _time,_ please. If you heal me now, they'll want me to return to my duties. And I can't." Running his fingers through his hair, he shook his head, his voice rising in pitch as he cried, "I just can't! My head is too messed up!"

The Emperor gave an understanding smile, but was prevented from replying by Commander Tolan, who burst into the room, weapon in hand. He stopped dead in his tracks when he saw his Imperial sovereign in the room, a bewildered look coming to his face. "Is everything alright, Majesty?" he asked concernedly.

"Yes, Commander," the Emperor assured, "everything is fine now. If you haven't already, please stand down from Alert."

The officer nodded, throwing a quick glance in the recovering prince's direction before holstering his weapon. "Majesty. Highness," he said, bowing slightly and then leaving.

"My Lord, but he's good," Jason remarked admiringly.

"The best," the Emperor agreed.

"It's funny his coming in like that. He's the reason I wanted to see you."

The monarch was justifiably puzzled. "Commander Tolan?"

"Yes. I wish to beg a favor."

"For Tolan?"

"He doesn't know I'm doing this, if that's what you're thinking," Jason said quickly. "I knew you'd want to heal me—"

"You did, did you?"

"—and I wanted to ask if you'd heal Lieutenant Fane in my place."

The Emperor gave him a puzzled look. "As a favor to Tolan?"

Jason nodded slowly, leaning back in bed and scrutinizing the Emperor carefully. Surely he knew the truth about Fane's lineage. He knew everything that went on within his Palace walls—eventually. "Uncle, I owe Tolan my life several times over," he said at last. "He'll say he was only doing his job, but I think taking an indefinite leave of absence and founding the Argonauts goes way beyond duty."

"Perhaps it was his way of repaying a debt he feels he owes you," the monarch observed astutely. Seeing the searching look upon his nephew's face, he informed, "Yes, I know Fane is Tolan's son. I also know of your professional involvement in his coming into the world."

Jason gave a self-conscious half-smile and lowered his eyes, saying nothing.

"All this is irrelevant," the monarch said with a wave of his hand. "I granted Commander Tolan an Imperial favor no more than a week ago. To grant another in so short a time—"

"Grant it to Fane, then, I don't care whose name goes on it. He's dying!" Jason said sharply, some of his old fire returning to his voice. "So many people have died because of this. Because of me. Please don't tell me you're saying no just because of a technicality in Imperial court protocol."

Emperor Quinton stiffened visibly. He was unaccustomed to being rebuked by anyone, but to have it come from Prince Jason, a decidedly unexpected source, was disquieting indeed. "And you said your head was too messed up," he said aridly. "It would appear, unlike your body, your reason is remarkably unimpaired."

The prince gave a weak smile. "I apologize for my tone—"

"Don't apologize for anything. You're absolutely right. And I intend to grant this favor. But in _your_ name—and on one condition."

"What's that?"

"That you consider it a part of your own healing process."

For the first time in days, Jason broke into a broad smile. "Deal."

* * *

Commander Tolan and Constance expected the worst when Roxell summoned them to the Critical Care Unit. They arrived to find, not the Healer, but the Emperor waiting for them just inside the door. The cover to the energy bed had been raised and they were stunned to see Fane dressed in a hospital gown and partially covered with a sheet. All the life support equipment had been removed, as had his bandages and casts. This caused Constance to catch her breath, believing it meant the young man had died. It was only when she turned to the monitors and saw their miraculous readings that a glimmer of the truth came to her. "He's…he's…"

"Healed is the word you're searching for, I believe," the Emperor said mildly. He then told the astonished pair of Jason's intercession on the Commander's behalf. "I know you feel you owe him a great debt, Commander," the monarch said slowly, "but it's his wish that you consider it paid in full. He can do nothing greater than restore your son to you."

Tolan caught his breath and looked up sharply, turning to the equally aghast Constance.

"No, he didn't tell me," the Emperor informed. "I've known for quite some time."

The Commander closed his eyes, expecting the worst. He had been living a lie for so many years he found himself strangely relieved now the truth was out. Or at least it would be soon.

"My dear Commander Tolan, when will you learn you can hide nothing from me?" the monarch asked in mild reproof. "Your guilt gave you away nearly thirty years ago."

"What!" Constance gasped. "You've known all this time? Why—?"

The Emperor held up a hand, explaining that he had said nothing because he knew the truth would do nothing other than damage the carrier of the best officer in the Imperial Guard. And with Jason so willing to take the glare of public scrutiny, who was he to interfere? Admittedly, he was concerned when Fane was accepted into the Imperial academy, going on to be relieved when he chose to train as a medic. It was only when Fane was called in to assist with the Argonauts as Tolan's Lieutenant that the Emperor actually thought to intercede. "I wasn't sure you'd allow him to do his job if things got dangerous," he admitted guiltily.

Looking at the unconscious Fane, Tolan said quietly, "I wish I hadn't." Sighing heavily, he said, "I wish I hadn't done a lot of things. Thank-you, Majesty, for giving him the chance to—"

"Commander, the favor is for _you_, not Fane," the Emperor said firmly. "Although I would have granted it to him had Jason asked me to. He's an exceptional individual, regardless of who claims paternity."

Tolan turned to the Emperor, a searching look on his face.

"Before you ask," Quinton said quickly, "your original favor still stands. This one was granted in the name of Prince Jason." With a knowing smile, he added, "Perhaps in time, we can connect the two."

Before the overwhelmed Tolan could think of anything to say, Fane stirred and moaned faintly. After a minute, he stirred again, finally opening his eyes. He looked around fuzzily and then frowned, uncertain as to where he was or how he had gotten there. Focusing on the person sitting beside him, he stared in amazement. Surely it wasn't…

"Commander…?" he said softly, a hand going to his head. "How did you…? I just talked to you." Now totally confused, Fane looked around and tried to sit up, only to fall back, finally registering the fact that he was in an energy bed. He noticed Constance standing just behind the Commander, tears rolling down her face. Now he knew something was seriously wrong. "What happened?" he asked at last.

"It's a long story," Tolan said gently.

"Is Uncle Jay alright?" Fane then asked, receiving a nod in reply. "Amanda?"

"They're both fine," Tolan replied.

The Lieutenant covered his face with his hands and tried desperately to remember what could have happened to him. But his mind was blank. The last thing he remembered was calling his men together to begin securing the house.

The Emperor had made a point of staying out of Fane's line of vision and took advantage of this brief instant to move to Tolan's side. "Normally he would need time to get his bearings after the conversion," he observed, "but it seems you're more in need of that than he is, Commander."

Tolan nodded, but was unable to respond, being too busy trying to fight back tears. The Emperor was quite right. He felt as if he were the one recovering from the conversion, considering the heightened emotions he was feeling. He drew a deep breath, and in as firm a voice as he could manage, he said, "Fane, there's something I—_we_—need to tell you."

The Lieutenant lowered his hands, looking from the uncharacteristically emotional Tolan to Constance and back. "Is it about what happened to me?"

"No. It's…something we should've told you a long time ago. About who you are," Tolan paused, struggling to come up with the right words. To his astonishment, it was Fane who found them. "I already know who I am," he said calmly. "I'm your son."

"How...? When...?" Tolan gasped once he had found his voice.

Fane gave a small smile. "I was on Uncle Jay's disk, too."


	47. Congratulations

**Chapter Forty-Seven**

**Congratulations**

"So, Constance is technically a condemned criminal," Turlough said, trying to get the complicated story straight in his mind. He was in the console room of the TARDIS and had gotten the details of the extraordinary events that had brought Constance and Tolan together in the first place. Not to his great surprise, they were just as bizarre as what had just occurred "And any…er, fraternization with the Imperial Guards is grounds for a court-martial.".

"You have it in one," the Time Lord replied, manipulating the controls on the console as he spoke

"But, why did _Constance_ have to hide everything too? What difference does it make if _she_ has a child?"

The Doctor gave him a dark look through his eyelashes. "Aegis is no where near the Alterran Empire. And Constance is Alterran. For her to conceive a child, it would have to be with another Alterran, meaning…"

"The odds on favorite would be whoever had the most contact with her," his companion completed.

"Which would be our friend Commander Tolan," the Doctor concluded.

Turlough nodded. "And that's when Jason rode in on his white horse."

"Yes." Shaking his head, the Doctor observed, "He's still an incurable romantic with a nasty streak of idealism. No wonder the Mythryn were so interested in him."

Two large manila envelopes were perched atop the time rotor and Turlough nodded in their direction. "And that's going to clear up the past thirty years of cover-ups?"

"According to Emperor Quinton," the Time Lord replied happily.

Glancing at the navigational controls, Turlough said, "We _are_ really going straight back to the Foundation, aren't we? No detours."

"I hope not. I'd hate for Kamelion to think we'd abandoned him." The TARDIS materialized at that moment and the Doctor smiled. "We've arrived," he announced, taking the envelopes from their perch and tucking them under his arm.

Stepping from the TARDIS, the time travelers found themselves on the back patio of the Sorenson Mansion, which had changed considerably since their departure. Long banquet tables were laid out for what appeared to be a formal dinner, balloons and streamers hanging from the walls and canopy. The air was thick with the scent of flowers that were literally everywhere.

The Doctor gave his companion a stunned look. "Did you happen to notice the date?" he asked slowly, receiving a shake of the head in reply. "Neither did I."

They entered the house to find even more preparations in progress. As they made their way toward the main staircase, a servant stopped them, thinking them to be members of the staff. "Where do you think you're going?" he demanded. "We've got work to do, y'know?"

The Doctor smiled broadly. "Splendid. We shan't get in your way, then. Could you tell us where we might find Miss Sorenson?"

_"Now?"_

"Of course now."

"You can't see her _now_. She's getting ready," the servant informed frostily. "All guests are being asked to wait in the Ballroom. I'll have someone—"

"No, that's quite alright. We know the way." The Doctor pulled his companion by the elbow and quickly made for the stairs. "I think we've taken too long a jump forward," he said quietly.

"What was your first clue?" Turlough asked dryly as they ascended the stairs.

What neither of them realized was Constance had already seen them from one of the second story windows. Ignoring the questioning looks from those they passed, the time travelers made straight for the Royal suite, finding a guard at the door. "Is Prince Jason in residence, by any chance?" the Doctor asked hesitantly.

"His Royal Highness is not receiving visitors at this time," the guard informed stiffly. "Please return to the Ballroom."

"We can't. We haven't been there yet," the Time Lord said mildly. "Now, please be so good as to announce the Doctor and Turlough."

"Look, I've just told you—"

The guard broke off when the door opened. "What the devil's all the—?" The person speaking was Commander Tolan, who stared in astonishment before breaking into a delighted smile, much to the amazement of his friends at the door. "Doctor!" he cried delightedly. "Where have you been?"

"Trying to get in," the Time Lord replied frostily.

Tolan gave the door guard a fierce look before ushering them inside. "We were afraid you'd miss everything," the Alterran officer said as he closed the door.

From across the room the Doctor heard a familiar laugh and turned to see a considerably healthier Prince Jason sitting in an easy chair. "He has no idea what you're talking about, Tolan," he informed. "I've seen that look before."

"Indeed?" the Doctor replied, the edge to his voice sharpening. "And what look might that be?"

Jason grinned all the more. "You don't have a clue what's going on, so you're absorbing everything we say so you can put together a time reference to see how far off the mark you are."

Turlough's mouth dropped open in amazement, causing the prince to give a squeal of delight.

"Oh, Jason, do stop showing off," Shadra scolded as she came in from the next room. "It's embarrassing." She was dressed in a formal evening gown; her long brown hair swept back and decorated with jewels and ribbons. She gave the Doctor an enchanting smile, greeting him as though it had been only hours since they last spoke. He soon learned the TARDIS had taken him nearly nine months into the future.

Looking the princess up and down, the Time Lord turned sharply back to Jason, who was dressed in Royal finery. The Commander was in full dress uniform, as was the visibly healed Lieutenant Fane, who came out of the next room.

Jason settled further back into his chair and watched his friend in amusement. He had a front row seat for the spectacle to come.

"You're certainly in a jovial mood," the Doctor observed as he crossed the room. "What's the occasion?"

Before his friend could respond the door opened and the reason became obvious as Constance entered wearing a wedding gown. She was also dragging the protesting Amanda along with her. "The devil take bad luck," she said as she closed the door. Turning to the Time Lord, Constance said in relief, "Thank goodness, Doctor, I didn't think you'd get here in time."

The Doctor was prevented from replying by Jason, who burst out laughing. Shadra gave him a quelling look and a stern reprimand telepathically, which did little good.

Despite this jocularity at his own expense, the Doctor found himself glad to hear his Alterran friend laughing once again. "I wouldn't've missed it for the world," he replied. He held out one of the envelopes to Tolan. "This is from the Emperor. I'm to tell you—it's for your son."

Amanda let out an involuntary squeak. "He's jumping the gun a bit, isn't he? They're not even married yet."

Tolan took the envelope, checked its contents and nodded approvingly. "Amanda, I'd like to introduce you to my son." With that, he handed the envelope to the appalled Lieutenant Fane. "This is your birthright. _Legally,_ now."

"No, Commander, you can't. I know the ramifications," Fane gasped. "I can't take it."

"Yes, you can," Jason injected mildly.

"Uncle Jay, I can't."

"You can and you will, young man!" Jason snapped, sounding more like a parent than ever. He got to his feet and crossed to Fane. "After today, it won't make a difference anyway. That simply clears up the past. A lot of work went into making everything free and clear legally for you and your father."

A ghost of a smile passed across Fane's face. "My father," he repeated, taking the package. "That still sounds so strange."

The Doctor grinned and then turned to Amanda. "And this is for you." He handed her the second envelope that turned out to contain a complete set of identity papers, all in the name of Dr. Amanda Spencer.

The stunned physician paged through the documents, finding everything from citizenship papers to Alexandria Foundation security clearances. "Doctor, I can't possibly accept this," she said once she had found her voice. "It's…it's not real."

"Does nobody want presents anymore?" Jason moaned. "Andy, those are all completely legal. The paper in your hand is proof of your membership in one of the most respected Houses in the Alterran Empire." He paused a beat before saying, "_My_ House. All the other papers devolve from that. And, as you can see, they're all countersigned by Emperor Quinton."

"Jason, I'm not Alterran. I'm human. What do you call us? The outside. Won't someone get suspicious?"

"Outsiders," the prince corrected, his amusement coming through in his voice. "And, no. No one will get suspicious. You have alien status."

With a small laugh, Tolan observed, "Even if they did get suspicious, you do realize _I'm_ the one they'd report to, don't you?"

"There's more," Constance grinned. "The identity papers were the Doctor's idea. Jason and Tolan made the arrangements and then the Doctor went to Alterrous to make sure everything was in order—which, no doubt is why he was late."

Fane went into the next room and returned with two packages.

"That's from me," Miss Sorenson informed as Fane handed over one of the packages. Inside was a desk plate reading, "Dr. Amanda Spencer, Robotics Department, Alexandria Foundation Medical Center." A key accompanied it.

"That's to your new living quarters," Constance informed. "As head of the Robotics Department, you can't possibly stay in that cramped apartment of yours. You need an office."

"Head of Robotics!" Dr. Spencer gasped. She turned the key over, seeing it to be from the main residence block. "Oh, Constance…"

"Wait, we haven't finished yet," Shadra grinned. "If you're going to be in charge, you'll need this." She handed her the second package, containing a new, more powerful (and considerably more expensive) medical scanner, her name and new title engraved upon it.

"We took the liberty of downloading all your customized programs while Tolan was working on your old one," Jason informed.

Amanda looked from one to the other, tears welling up in her eyes. "I don't know what to say," she said at last. "Thank you. All of you. I don't deserve any of this."

"Yes, you do," Shadra said mildly. "More, in fact."

"No."

"Andy, for pity sake, stop the false modesty," Jason said sarcastically. "We're trying to give you a group apology."

"Of course. I should've realized. Thank you for so gently pointing that out to me," she said in an equally sarcastic tone.

"Now, don't you two start that again," the Doctor admonished, turning back to Amanda. "We accused you of some rather nasty things. Myself included. You've every right to be bitter—"

"Bitter!" Amanda exclaimed. "All I wanted was a chance to prove myself." She gave the prince a knowing smile, remembering having said this very thing to him the day he saw her clearly for the first time. He had come at her in rage and distrust, and was now showering her with praise and affection. With a laugh, she said, "Would you look at me. I'm not the one getting married and here I am with all the presents."

Turlough watched as Jason leaned over and whispered something to the Doctor, who smiled broadly. _If they only knew what's coming,_ he thought darkly. Then he wondered what had happened to the others after he and "his" Doctor were dropped straight into Jason's past.


	48. Coda

**Chapter Forty-Eight**

**CODA**

In a maximum-security prison on Aegis, inmate Gustav Inness was being escorted from his cell to the visitors' area. It was not a normal visiting day, and even if it were, it was long past visiting hours. He was at a loss as to who might actually want to see him. Nearly two years had passed since his arrest, trial and subsequent conviction for his part in the abduction, imprisonment, and torture of Crown Prince Jason. In all that time, no one other than his attorney had been to see him.

He entered what he thought was the deserted, partially lit visitors room, thinking his visitor would arrive momentarily. It was not until he took a seat at one of the tables that he saw the man across the room. He was standing in front of a large window, the shadows in the room having obscured his presence. Inness waited several minutes for the stranger to speak. When he did not, the puzzled inmate said softly, "They said you wanted to see me." The figure at the window stiffened visibly when Inness spoke, adding to his bewilderment.

Without turning around, the man responded, "Well, that answers one question. Obviously your surgery was successful."

Inness scowled, wondering how this stranger could possibly know of the surgery that had returned his voice. An anonymous benefactor had made it possible, arrangements having been made through intermediaries. Granted his voice didn't have the same power as before, but at least he could speak. "Are _you_ the one I should be thanking for arranging it?" he asked.

The stranger turned, his face still obscured in darkness. His eyes seemed to glow as they fixed themselves on the increasingly uneasy Inness. "Yes. You have an appeal coming up soon, I believe. I thought you might appreciate being able to actually _speak_ in your own defense."

"I do, but… Why me and not some other more deserving person? I'm nobody."

"That's not what the Vid-News services say."

As the only survivor of Legrand's research team, Inness had taken the brunt of the public outcry when all the facts surrounding Prince Jason's abduction came out. His whole life was suddenly considered news, and a media circus ensued, driving away the few friends he had. He had only been spared from a death sentence through the intervention of an unknown third party. Rumor had it that Legrand's unknown financier had been behind it. In fact, even his own attorney, who was the best and most expensive on Aegis, had been hired and was being paid by someone else. "The Vid-News," he snorted. "They're a big—" Breaking off, he asked, "Did you hire my lawyer, too?"

"Yes. And before you ask, I'm not the one who was financing Dr. Legrand's work."

Relieved to hear this, Inness observed, "You're a very important man, though, aren't you?"

"What makes you say that?" came the amused reply.

"Well, first off, my lawyer wouldn't've taken my case unless he knew whoever hired him could pay his outrageous fees. And since that suit you're wearing probably cost more than I used to earn in a year, I've not doubt you can afford him. They don't let just anybody in here on off visitors' day, especially this late. You're obviously not my lawyer, so you must be a very influential person."

The stranger nodded his admiration at these obviously accurate observations. "That's what they tell me." As he spoke, he moved out of the gloom and came to stand before the inmate, whose eyes grew wide as saucers when he finally saw his face. It was Crown Prince Jason.

"Your Royal Highness!" Inness gasped, almost falling from his chair in disbelief.

"I wanted to talk to you privately," the prince said as he sat across from the stupefied inmate. It had been more than a year since they had last seen one another, this being when the Alterran had testified at trial. At that time, Jason was still recovering from the events surrounding his abduction. He looked considerably different now. It was obvious that he was in the peak of health, his eyes clear, his voice strong, and his body whole.

Inness was suddenly very, very afraid. "I still don't know anything!" he blurted out. "I was just an underling, a peon, a cog in the wheel!" He tried to push back from the table and was prevented by Jason who reached out and took him firmly by the arm. "I_ know_ that," he said just as firmly. "I was _there_, remember?"

"But why are you _here?_ Come to gloat?"

Closing his eyes, the Alterran gave an involuntary shudder. "No, that's Curtis's department, not mine." Looking up, he said, "I don't know what he told you you were supposed to be doing, but…I just…" Drawing a deep breath, he said, "I guess first I wanted to thank you for saving my life when you stopped that sensor program. There's a lot of what went on that I don't remember. But _that_ I do. Quite clearly."

Inness was starring open mouthed at him. _He's thanking me! After all I did to him, he's thanking me!_ Finding his voice at last, he stammered out, "I don't…I don't…" Rising to his feet, he clamped his hands over his ears. "You should hate me! It's been two years and I can still hear you screaming! Why don't you hate me?"

The prince remained passive, asking calmly, "What would that accomplish?"

"What does sparing me from a death sentence with some high powered lawyer accomplish? Or paying for my surgery?" Inness countered in as forceful a tone as he could manage. "You can't possibly have a guilty conscience over of what happened. You were the victim!"

Jason sat back and gave him a thoughtfully look. "Mr. Inness, we're both victims. Damaged goods, you and I, no thanks to Curtis. I know what he did to you, and more importantly, I know _why_. It doesn't excuse what you did up to that point, but it is telling.I'm not a vindictive person, but I wouldn't even attempt to stop the judicial system from punishing you for your involvement in the Lazarus project. Conversely, there's no reason you should be blamed for what Curtis did after he went over the edge."

Still unable to think of a suitable reply, Inness was silent for several minutes before finally saying, "Your Highness, what do you want from me after all this time? An apology? I've already—" He broke off when the prince held up his hands and said, "No that's not why I came."

"What do you want from me?"

Jason drew a deep breath, and rose to his feet nervously pacing back and forth. "I have… questions about what happened. And you're the only one who can answer them." Turning, he admitted, "It's taken me this long just to get up the courage to come here. I keep telling everyone that I don't want to remember, but that's a lie. I need to know what happened."

Throwing a glance back at the door, Inness informed, "Your Highness, everything we say in here is recorded. And, as you've already said, I have an appeal coming up."

Jason gave him a knowing smile and sat down. "You remember about my bio-electric field? The fact that it's different than humans?"

"Of course. You have a silicon-based…" The former technician's words trailed off and he stared at the Alterran as if seeing him for the first time. "You can do that?" he gasped.

"A trick of the First Circle. They'll never know what went wrong. Freak electrical wave pulse is the usual conclusion," came the amused reply. "Now, will you tell what I want to know?"

"With no recriminations?"

"None. I want information, not to lay blame." With a small smile, Jason added, "Believe it or not, I _am_ on your side."

Inness sat down and poured himself a glass of water. Drawing a deep breath, he asked, "How much time do you have?"

* * *

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

The story continues in Part 4, _A Different Kind Of Guardian_, in which we learn exactly what did happen after Turlough and "his" Doctor left the others. This story is also a sequel to _The Guardian; _story 6 in my 4th Doctor companion arc.


End file.
